New Beginnings
by Serena Chibi
Summary: Serena is a 21 year old woman, trying to get by in life. Will a chance meeting help her to do just that? Or will he be another to leave his mark on her? The characters are normal people, no Sailor Moon here. Rated M just in case for future chapters.
1. Chapter 1

New Beginnings

Chapter 1

By: Serena Chibi

Date: March 10, 2011

Disclaimer: I do NOT own Serena, Darien, Ray, Mina, Lita, Andrew, or any other characters from the Sailor Moon franchise. These characters are Naoko Takeuchi's and I am using them only for personal enjoyment, no profits here. Anyway, hope you enjoy the story, I'll decide if I continue on it based upon the reviews.

Walking through the front doors of the large building, Serena toys nervously with her hair. She watches her blue haired friend walk ahead of her into the building and follows slowly behind her.

"Let's go, Serena! We can't be late for this meeting!" Amy yells back at her from the doorway.

"Correction, Amy. YOU can't be late for this meeting, I don't even work here, remember?" Serena replies, while moving faster to catch up to her.

"Don't work here yet, Serena. Yet, but you will." Amy states as she slaps Serena's hand away from her hair lightly. "Stop playing with your hair, and follow me."

"Fine, let's just get this over with, 'cause I'm hungry", Serena whines from beside her.

_Nice to know some things never change. _Amy thinks to herself as she leads her blonde haired friend into the meeting room.

Serena sits in a chair next to Amy and start playing with her long hair in her lap while Amy gives her presentation to the ten other employees and her boss. As the meeting comes to an end and people start to leave, Serena looks up to find Amy talking to a man… No, a god. His jet black hair was slightly ruffled, falling just above his eyes… Those eyes that are the deepest blue she's ever seen. Before she knows it, Amy is dragging her over to the man.

"Serena, meet my boss, Darien"

"It's nice to meet you, Serena." Darien states while extending a hand to her.

Serena freezes up and Amy nudges her arm, snapping her out of her trance. Serena then grabs Darien's hand lightly. Looking up at him briefly to introduce herself, Serena diverts her eyes to the ground.

Ducking back into her vision, Darien says, "So, I hear you need a job? Amy here has mentioned you to me many times before and seems to want you to work here. The only job I have open for now is in our marketing department, as head of our creative advertising. How well do you draw or design things?"

"I'm okay at drawing, and thank you for the job offer, I greatly appreciate it." Serena pulls her eyes from the ground to look at him.

"How soon can you start?" he asks Serena. _Sure, he didn't really know this girl or her requirements for this job but something felt right about hiring her as soon as he could._

"Um, tomorrow? I'll be in first thing in the morning… That is, if you actually want me to work for you?" She asks quietly. She felt as if this were some kind of charity case or something, and wanted to make sure he actually wanted to hire her.

Soon enough, Amy and Serena are headed home in Amy's little four-door hybrid.

"Ooh, stop here!" Serena shouts from the passenger seat, causing Amy to jump. Amy pulls the car into the McDonald's Drive-Thru. Serena orders two ranch BLT sandwiches with crispy/fried chicken, a large fry and large coke. Amy starts poking fun at Serena, "Geeze, that's a lot of food, Serena! You would think that you're eating for two!"

"Well, I'm just hungry is all; I missed breakfast this morning, now I'm starved!" Serena replies as she turns to look out the car window.

Mina, Lita, and Ray had all been hanging out this morning while Serena and Amy were at the meeting, so they all agreed to meet up at Serena and Amy's apartment afterwards. Upon arriving at their apartment, Serena hurriedly cleans up her mess of clothes and food from the living room. Even though she had a room, it was just much easier to sleep on the couch when she was jobless, that way she didn't have to move from the TV. Since it had been a few weeks since she quit her last job, the living room was quite the mess. As she finished up vacuuming the room, the rest of the girls arrived.

The girls all gather in the living room to eat and Serena chooses to sit upon the nicely carpeted floor, placing her food on the low table in front of her. Everyone is enjoying their food until Serena starts to eat her own. She quickly devours everything, from the two sandwiches to the last of her fries. She's takes the final bite of her sandwich when she notices the other girls watching her.

"Umm… what's up, you guys? Whatcha staring at?" she questions.

"A hippo or giant pig of some kind," Ray replies, snidely. At this comment, Serena's eyes start to water and immediately Mina yells at Ray, "That was a little harsh, Ray".

Next was Lita "Yea, what's wrong with you?" and Amy "Oh, Serena, don't cry. Ray was just being her usual mean self" as she places an arm around her shoulders. Serena brushes off the touch and makes a sprint for the bathroom. Quickly closing and locking the door behind her.

Curling up on the floor next to the bathtub and toilet, she clutches at her stomach. A few tears streaming down her face still, Serena lurches the contents of her stomach into the porcelain savior before her.

All the girls gather around the door, knocking lightly. "Serena, she didn't mean it! Come out!" Mina yells from the hallway. They hear the toilet flush and water running, then the door opens to reveal a slightly paler Serena.

"I'm just gonna go and lay down, Girls. I suddenly don't feel too well." She says.

"Probably because all your food is finally hitting-" Ray starts but stops abruptly as Mina elbows her side.

"That's alright, go lay down. We'll just hang with Amy for a bit; give us a holler if you need anything" Lita tells Serena while guiding her to the bedroom.

Serena walks into her room and slowly approaches the waterbed. She mindlessly flops down onto the bed and relaxes into the slow waves of movement.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

By: Serena Chibi

Date: March 26, 2011

Serena awoke early the next morning to the sound of her phone going off. "Who could it be this early in the morning?" she slowly reaches for her phone and looks at the name running across the front screen. "Seiya… what could he possibly want now", she thinks out loud as she wonders whether or not to pick up the phone._ Eh, I don't really have a reason to talk to him after this long, now do I? Nah, I don't owe that guy a thing, especially not on my first day of work._ Serena presses the button to silence her phone.

Rolling onto her back in bed, Serena stares at the ceiling through her fan as it slowly spins. Thinking of the things that Seiya had promised her… _love, a gorgeous house with everything she dream of having, a family, kids…_ her eyes tear up as she thinks of what could've been. Realizing she should probably get ready for work, she sits up in bed and wipes her eyes dry. _I really need to stop thinking about him._

Amy wakes up to the sound of the hot water tank and the shower turning off. "Serena? What are you doing awake at…7:00? Really? I didn't even know that this hour existed to you."

"I have my first day of work today, remember? Or did you really forget so soon, Amy." Serena smirks as she walks up to Amy's door. Standing there in her towel, she asks "what exactly does one wear to an office like this? I mean, I worked for Seiya before so… the whole work attire thing was never really expected of me."

"I almost forgot about that! Well, you can wear either dress pants or a skirt and a nice top, or you can always wear dresses to work. Pretty much anything that is upscale casual or formal looking would be fine." Amy tells Serena while fighting off sleep, "If I may suggest something, I think you should wear that new black skirt you just bought. That was adorable and it's nice enough to wear to work". Smiling slightly, Amy tells Serena she's tired and will talk to her later.

"Okay, thanks Amy. I'll see you after my first day of work then." Serena walks back to her room and finds her blow-dryer on her dresser. She hurriedly dries her hair and brushes it out. After a few moments of thinking, she decides to leave her hair down. Grabbing a white button up and her new, black pencil skirt, she finishes preparing for work. _Have I put on weight?_ Serena thinks to herself as she struggles with the button on the waist of her skirt. _No, I couldn't have. I'm probably just bloated from my dinner last night or something._


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

By: Serena Chibi

Date: April 04, 2011

Walking into the building, Serena makes her way up to the seventh floor. Approaching the desk that stands in the middle of the room, she looks down the long hallways to the left and right of the desk. As she looks at the closest offices for one with her name on it a woman says hello to her from behind the desk causing her to jump.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. My name is Molly; you must be Serena, right?", the short, brunette-haired woman asks happily.

"Oh, yea; sorry I just didn't see you back there. No need to apologize, I'm just a little jumpy is all. Um, so I wasn't told where my office would be exactly… Could you please help me find it?", Serena asks the young woman politely.

"It should be right down this hallway and to your left. It should have 'Serena Tsukino' written on the door now, as well." Molly says as she points down the hallway to her right.

Serena follows the directions she was given only to find a rather large office overlooking the lake to the back of the building. Walking up to the beautiful mahogany desk, she runs her hand along it and tests the leather chair behind it. She never had an office like this when she was working for Seiya, actually she didn't even remember having an office of her own then. Getting up to look out the panoramic window at the lake and the sun rising higher in the sky, she was unaware of the presence in her office doorway.

"I can't believe I actually have an office with a view like this; it's beautiful!", Serena exclaims to herself.

"Glad you like your office" Darien says from the doorway, causing Serena to turn around and blush at her unawareness. "I figured I'd come grab you to meet your coworkers… well, at least the task leaders anyway. You can meet the many other employees as you continue to work here." He says while smiling and gesturing for her to come with him.

"Wow, the people here are so nice…" Serena says quietly to herself.

"Are you not used to nice people or something?" Darien looks at her quizzically.

"Oh, sorry I didn't realize I said that out loud. Well, my boyfriend - Ex-boyfriend actually, got me the job, it was his company. The people I worked with weren't exactly the nicest people to be around." Serena replied while looking to the ground shyly.

"Oh, okay. Well, we're like one big family here, so you'll probably be a lot more happy here anyway" Darien says while nudging her arm, and smiling down at her.

They walk into a large meeting room on the first floor and Serena looks around at everyone. Suddenly she recognizes the blonde-haired, brown-eyed Andrew. Andrew was a childhood friend that she hadn't seen in quite a while. He practically yells hello, while waving and smiling at her. At this, Darien places his hand over his face to hide his chuckling. Serena says hello back to Andrew and smiles.

"Okay, well you obviously know Andrew already. There's also Kunzite, Jadeite, and Nephrite, right over here" Darien gestures towards the other three men, "Those three are brothers, and Amy isn't here today but she's our other Task Leader."

"It's nice to finally meet you Nephrite" Serena blurts out as she extends a hand to him.

"Hopefully all good things" he replies as she continues to shake hands with his brothers.

"Andrew, I haven't seen you in so long!" Serena grabs the young man in a deep hug.

"Well, it's been at least a year or two since I last spoke to you. You kind of disappeared. Anyway, we should catch up sometime" Andrew tells her.

Darien watches from the door quietly as everyone exit's the room save for Serena and Andrew. Feeling a little twinge of jealousy that his friend and coworker is so close to this beautiful, young woman, he decides to cut in on them; "so, how exactly do you two know each other?" he asks a little aggressively, feeling slightly aggravated at being left out of the conversation. Almost immediately after interrupting them, Darien was kicking himself because the look on Serena's face.

"Oh, I'm sorry" Serena said as she cast her eyes to the ground. "I really shouldn't have gotten so involved with personal relationships while at work. It's just that Andrew and I were friends since we were little kids and I haven't gotten to see him in quite some time." _Actually I haven't really gotten to see any of my friends too often for quite some time now…. _Serena found herself a little lost in thought.

"Oh, okay.. Well, I don't believe you have any actual work to do today, so you're welcome to head home after this." Darien replied while managing a little smile before leaving.

While walking back to his office, Darien thinks about Serena. _Why can't I stop thinking about this girl? I mean, I really shouldn't even be upset at the fact that Andrew knows her and is her friend. I shouldn't have cut in on them but I just wanted to know how he knew her. I feel bad that I scared her… Is that what I did, I scared her? Was I really that mean? I don't think I was too mean cause Andrew would've said something. I could just be imagining things, I mean she only had that expression on her face for like, a split second so…_

Finding himself lost in thoughts about Serena, he watches out the window as she and Andrew are leaving. They're walking closely and laughing a little but something seems off about her. As she was laughing, her blue eyes seemed to dance while her long, golden hair danced in the wind, but looking closer at her, her body seemed to be tensed as if she were anticipating something. _There is something about that girl… _Darien thought to himself.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

By: Serena Chibi

Date: April 05, 2011

Serena continued walking down the street and speaking to Andrew. She was starting to feel a little on edge as he asked her about her past. "So, what have you done for the past year or two? I haven't seen you at all, really." Andrew asked curiously.

She had to think about it for a moment. "Well, I was a secretary at a firm, working for Seiya. Uh, Amy's been working here obviously; Lita's been working as a chef-"

"Whoa, slow down there, I was asking about you, not the world, Serena." Andrew said, raising his hands and stopping her mid-sentence.

"Oh, sorry. I mean, I just don't really have much to say about myself. Other than being with Seiya and working for him, there isn't much else…" She trailed off, kicking herself for saying something so blatant in regards to her past.

"You didn't do anything other than work for and be with the dude? No hobbies or interests? What'd you do when you were alone and on your own?" Andrew practically grilled her on the subject.

"Well, I enjoyed horseback, I would drive almost an hour out of town to do that. I really enjoyed it but I had to stop, so I started drawing even more…" Serena replied, while looking up to eet Andrew's gaze for a moment.

"If you enjoyed riding then why'd you stop? I mean, if it's something you really enjoy, then why stop?" He asked curiously.

"I couldn't afford to." _That was a lie but if it gets him to stop pestering me then it's fine._ She then looked to her watch and faked a panic. "I have to go, goodbye Andrew!" She then took off at a run, leaving a very confused Andrew standing alone. He ran his fingers through his hair, trying to think about what just happened. Who was this girl? She definitely wasn't that cheery, carefree Serena that he'd known just a few short years ago. What made her change so much since then?

Serena had started to feel very uncomfortable as Andrew was asking her questions. She didn't know how to answer them and she just had to get away from him. She had pretended to be late for something and hoped that Andrew didn't remember that Darien had sent her home early just a few minutes before. She just couldn't take anymore questions because she couldn't answer them honestly. If she did, then Andrew wouldn't look at her the same anymore, and she didn't want that.

Deciding to drive home, Serena gets in her car and pops in a mix CD she'd made. Listening to Plumb, Miranda Cosgrove, and Kelly Clarkson always seemed to calm her when she was like this. Blasting "Never Again" as she put the top down in her car, Serena headed home.

Arriving back at the apartment, Serena's stomach starts to grumble. _Hmm.. I must be hungry._ She thinks. _Well, I guess I didn't have a big breakfast? It was just a bagel but that seemed fine earlier. How am I so hungry still? Well, how about some cereal._ Her stomach lurched at the thought. _Okay, I guess not. How about some eggs then? _She then proceeded to make some scrambled eggs and decided to put them on a bagel with a slice of American cheese and some ketchup. Eating the sandwich, she smiled in satisfaction of her work. _Hey look at that, I could be a chef just like Lita! _She thought then chuckled out loud at the very thought. "I could probably never cook as well as Lita."

Sitting down to watch some Animal Cops Houston, she laid on the couch and fell asleep. Upon waking, she went to get some ice cream then went to the beach. It was a beautiful day, almost ninety-degrees and sunny now. She wandered onto the beach enjoying the feel of the sun on her skin. _It's been so long since I enjoyed this last. _Walking towards a slightly secluded section on the beach where there was nothing but a few people sunbathing, She laid out her towel. Sitting on the towel, she removed her shirt to reveal a silky pink bikini top. Quickly laying down she hid her back from anyone who might see the last of her bruises healing. They didn't really hurt anymore, they were just a little discolored.

She was able to lounge in the sun again without any problems, for the first time in a few years. After her and Seiya had become serious, he thought it was disgraceful for her to reveal too much of her body to any other man. He bought her one-piece bathing suits and always accompanied her to the beach.. And the mall.. And work.. Actually, he was pretty much everywhere she was. She didn't think much of it at the time, until he'd first hit her when they arrived home one day.

That day, they had went to the mall and a random guy said hello to her and she made friendly conversation with him. When they got home shortly after, Seiya had smacked her across the face then apologized for it. She was so confused by this and didn't have anyone to talk to. Seiya had taken her cell phone and that's about when she lost contact with her friends and Andrew. She didn't have any family to lose contact with, she was left alone when her parents had died in a car crash almost five years ago. As for her brother, he was in the army and still had two-years left on his tour. Shingo was a great brother but he wasn't really around because his being in the army. She'd last seen him about a year ago when he got to come home for a week. He'd stayed with her and Seiya, and it was a lovely week because Seiya couldn't hurt her. Then Shingo left, and everything returned to it's vicious cycle.

Eventually she had gotten fed up with it, and on that final night she was able to reach out to Amy. Amy wasn't aware of her history, she just didn't ask anymore because Serena would never answer her questions. Serena was careful to wear a skirt-like cover over the bottom of her swimsuit. This skirt covered the last of her bruises and those most painful to her. Not physically painful, just emotionally…


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

By: Serena Chibi

Date: April 29, 2011

A few days passed and Serena started to feel more at ease at her job. She was trying her best to avoid Andrew without being obvious about it because she didn't feel like answering more questions. Heading to work she feels exhausted, even after she had ten hours of sleep last night.

Flopping down on the chair in her office, Serena feels slightly better when she notices the sandwich on the desk in front of her. Molly had been kind enough to get her am egg, cheese bagel when she first started and it quickly became a little tradition. Going to unwrap the sandwich, she suddenly feels sick upon smelling it. Making a b-line for her small, private bathroom, she arrives just in time to retch in it.

Amy appears at the office door and looks around for Serena, not seeing her she wanders into the room. "Serena? Are you in here?", Amy asks as she makes her way to the bathroom. Finding Serena by the toilet she eyes her curiously.

"Are you okay? What's been going on with you lately? Are you sick?" Amy continues with her string of questions as she feels Serena's forehead. "Well, you don't feel warm.. So, it's not the flu then. You have been eating a lot lately too… Serena, are you pregnant?" she looks at Serena with wide eyes now.

"I don't know." Serena manages out between lurches.

"Oh… well, do you want to know? I mean, I could go and grab a test or two for you from the pharmacy down the street. Here, why don't you wait here - maybe not in the bathroom perhaps in your office - and I'll be back in ten minutes or so."

Saying "Okay…" quietly, Serena watches as Amy rushes out the door. Then her mind starts reeling. _What if I am pregnant? I can't really go back to Seiya or anything. I mean, who's to say if I went back that things would be different just cause I'm pregnant? If I am in fact pregnant. I couldn't possibly subject my child to living in that house with a man with obvious anger problems. _Her thoughts are cut short as Amy comes rushing into the room with a handful of tests.

"I just wanted to make sure you get the accurate response." Amy shrugs as Serena chuckles a little at the overkill. "Okay, are you ready for this? To know whether or not you are going to have a baby or not?"

"I guess I'll find out one way or another but I guess sooner is better than later, right?" Serena shrugs as she walks towards the bathroom with all the tests. Not even a minute later she places them all on the counter and starts watching the clock and counting down the longest three minutes of her life. Sure it was only three minutes but it was a life changing three minutes. Quickly getting impatient, Serena wanders to her desk and sits down across from where Amy is sitting. Then after what seems like forever, the three minutes are up.

"Do you want to look or do you want me to look for you?" Amy asks cautiously as she emerges from the bathroom with the tests in hand.

"Um, could you look for me? I don't know if I really want to know. I don't know…" Serena looks to her lap, and thinks about the night that everything had happened with Seiya. The tearing of her clothing and the violent assault on her body. To refrain from letting her tears win, she fumbles with her skirt. After a few moments, she looks up to see Amy fumbling around with the tests and their corresponding directions to figure out the results.

"Oh my god… Serena, you're pregnant!", Amy suddenly yells out after a slight gasp. "And you don't seem happy." She grabs her friend in a strong embrace.

Serena didn't know what to say, let alone what to do. She was pregnant - with Seiya's kid. Of all people, why did it have to be him! Years ago, she would've been jumping up and down, happy as can be about having his kid. Now it just seems like a cruel reminder of a cruel man. How could she possibly love this kid, knowing how it was conceived? What about a father; she didn't want to raise a kid with no father. Letting her tears fall, she clings to Amy tightly.

"I know this is a big change and all, but it's not that bad." Amy pats her back.

"Yes it is! It is that bad; I can't raise a child - not his child!" Serena sobs.

"Seiya's, you mean?" Amy looks confused.

"Yes, Seiya's! The only man I've ever slept with! The man who attacked me the night I called you several months ago! That's no way to conceive a child and I cannot do this alone." Serena covers her mouth as Amy looks at her with her mouth wide open. She hadn't meant to say it, but she was just too emotional right now and couldn't stop it. She felt somewhat relieved that she'd finally told someone but was terrified standing there waiting for Amy to say something but she didn't. Finally, Amy steps towards Serena and hugs her and tells her how sorry she is for what she had to go through.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

By: Serena Chibi

Date: May 30, 2011

``` Sorry for the kinda scattered updates lately, just going through a lot, college finals & work. To readers: DelSan 13, I'm going to clarify more on that but she was a virgin when she met Seiya, he didn't steal her virginity when he raped her though because that was several years into their relationship. She'll explain it later in the story As for everyone else, thank you for reading & continue to enjoy. I promise there will be more Darien, starting… now. Oh & any suggestions on where to go with this story are always appreciated, I have a general idea but I'm writing this as I go.

After a while of consoling from Amy, Serena asks her to politely leave so she could get her work done. Amy happily obliges and tells Serena she'll see her at the apartment after work. Serena returns to her desk and sits down as she thumbs through some papers. Finally finding something worth working on, she tries to focus on that instead. After drawing up some artwork for a few campaigns that Shields is working on, she turns to look out the window. Letting out a tear that was trying to fall for some time now, she quickly dries it as she hears a light knock at her door.

Turning around Serena sees Darien. Having not seen him too much since she started, she wonders why he's here now. Looking at him, he looks as if there's something on his mind. He looked up from his hands and saw Serena watching him then seemed to freeze.

*about an hour earlier*

Darien just got back from a business trip, he felt exhausted and just wanted to go home. Arriving at his office he walks over to his desk and starts flipping through his mail. Coming upon an invitation to a Gala he starts looking the details over when Jadeite walks in the room.

"Hey, how was the trip? Ooh, did you meet anyone?" Jadeite asks while raising an eyebrow to Darien. "Anyone to keep your bed warm, anyway? 'Cause you really should get laid man; it's been _forever_ for you, the guys and I are getting are getting a little irritated now, too. I mean, you've been a little irritable as of late and it's rubbing off on us, dude." Jadeite continues as he runs his fingers through his short, dirty-blonde hair.

Had this been anyone else, Darien would've probably went off on them but him and the guys at work were all pretty close. They'd go out for drinks after work a few times a week, and he had no other friends really except Andrew who he also happened to work with. He kept to himself, especially after his mother and father passed. His father wanted him to take over Shields Inc. ever since he could remember, so he did so and barely had spare time because of it.

"I met one girl at the hotel bar one night but nothing happened with her. I just didn't feel like doing anything with her. I'm getting a little sick of girls throwing themselves at me, I want someone serious not just a one-night stand anymore. So, I apologize for my irritability because I haven't been laid in at least a month." Darien spoke calmly to his friend. "And now there's a corporate Gala that I need to attend and I don't even have a date. That's just great." He mumbles out.

"Well, how about you take… um, the only girl that comes to mind would be Amy but that'd just be wrong cause she's Amy and you know Nephrite would go berserk…" Jadeite rambles.

"Speaking of irritable situations, that's one right there for you! Nephrite needs to just ask her out already, we all know he likes her, it's just him that needs to admit it already." Darien says, trying to get the focus off of him and his lady problems.

"Yea, whatever. Back to you. There is that pretty little new blonde working here now. The one that Amy convinced you to hire; what about her? I'm sure she'd say yes considering you gave her a job and she'll look gorgeous on you arm at this event. No doubts about that." Jadeite nudges Darien's arm.

"No, man. I mean, she'd probably be one of the best-looking dates I'll ever bring to one of these things" Darien says as he throws the invitation back on his desk, "but I just don't think it'll be appropriate because she's new and I hardly know her. Plus, she probably has a boyfriend and-".

"You like her! You like her, don't you?" Jadeite practically yells out as he notices the slight red on Darien's face. "I've been watching you twiddle your thumbs and try to look busy here! You have the hots for her and you're nervous, about what? Being rejected or something?" He starts questioning.

"No! I mean, no I don't have the hots for her or anything like that, and I'm not afraid of being rejected… I think?" Darien questions himself out loud. "Besides, as I said: completely inappropriate. I can't be caught dating an employee, do you know how that will look?"

"You should at least take her to this event, then you can make an informed decision about whether or not you should date her. I mean, if you really like her and you guys have a good time next week at this thing, then maybe you should reconsider your stance on whether or not it's good for the company's image if you're with her. Although, wedding bells can only be a good thing for the leader of a large corporation." Jadeite tries to persuade his friend but can't help but joke at the end.

"Fine, I'll do that then, okay? Will you stop bugging me if I do this?" Darien snaps at Jadeite while trying to think of how to ask her. Deciding to go with being cool about it and just telling her that he needs someone to attend a company event with him; Darien says goodbye to Jadeite and makes his way to Serena's office.

Arriving in her office doorway, Darien sees her looking out the window which makes up the entire back of her office. He suddenly feels a little nervous but musters up the nerves to knock lightly on the doorframe as he stands there and messes with his hands. He knew exactly what he was going to say until Serena turned around. Seeing that her eyes are slightly red and puffy but also glistening, he can't help but lose his voice at the sight of her. Her eyes looked at him questioningly and he froze like a deer in headlights.

`back to current time`

Serena was looking at Darien standing in the doorway curiously when he froze. She nervously looks at the tests on her desk, which are at least hiding behind the base of her desk lamp for now. She says, "What can I do for you, Mr. Shields?" as she casually reaches for the handful of tests and tosses them in the wastebasket under her desk, hoping he didn't notice.

Darien finally gets his nerves in check and asks her to attend the gala with him. Serena felt a little weird about it but tells him that she'd be happy to go with him.

"It's not for another week, so I'll meet you here at your office next Friday then, say 6:30ish? Plus, they'll be serving dinner there, so come hungry.", Darien jokes with her as he says goodbye and makes his way to his office, so he can gather his things and go home for the first time in a week.

Serena's heart was racing a little as the man she called her boss, left the room. She wanted him to be more than a boss to her though. He was gorgeous and kind to her, and that's what she wanted in a man. They were two traits that she once believed Seiya possessed when she was with him.

Arriving back at her and Amy's apartment by 5 o'clock, Serena let herself in and made her way to her room. She needed to pick something out or go and buy something that she could wear to this gala with Darien. She calls Mina who almost immediately shows up at the door. The petite blonde looked similar to Serena but her eyes and hair were slightly different in color. Mina was also a little bit of a 'sex kitten' and Serena hoped she wouldn't pick anything too revealing for her to wear.

Catching a black dress as Mina tosses it her direction, Serena hurries to try it on in the bathroom. Looking nervously in the mirror she wonders how noticeable her stomach is. She's surprised to find it's still surprisingly small even though she should be around 3 ½ months along if she guessed right. Running a hand over her stomach, she looks in the mirror then turns around to admire her dress. The little black dress is tight around her body, ending at her knees, with little spaghetti straps, a sweetheart neckline and a slit up the side up to nearly her hip. She liked the dress, especially the little red ribbon going around the bust area and tying neatly in the back. Other than the ribbon, her upper back was bare.

After agreeing on the dress she'd wear, Serena lays on the bed next to Mina. Of course Mina wants to know everything about Serena's boss and asks question after question about him, how he looks, his personality, etc. Serena answers as many questions as she could, but when it comes to his personality and looks she seems almost lost for words.

"I mean, he's attractive.. He has black hair which makes his blue eyes pop like crazy. He has a great personality; he seems very nice and sweet from what I can tell. All around just a great guy and obviously great business person to keep his corporation running as smoothly as it does." Serena tells Mina, smiling all the while.

"You like him, don't you? I can tell by how you're talking about him. You haven't talked about anyone like that since-"

"Seiya." Serena cuts Mina off. "I know. I'm not anywhere near ready for anything though, besides he's my boss aren't there like rules or something against that?" Serena looks at Mina quizzically.

"I don't think there's anything official against it, it's just usually frowned upon. Besides, I think love is more important than rules or something, isn't it? So what does it matter what the rules say? You can't stay alone forever you know. I mean, sure Seiya broke your heart but it's been almost four months now, maybe you should try getting out a little more. Getting out will help your heart heal faster." Mina tells Serena.

"Yea, maybe that'll work but you can't get mad if I don't listen to you on this one okay? I have a lot more things to worry about than finding a man right now." Serena points to her stomach. "I think this takes priority over anything else right now".

"Have you told your boss yet? I mean, you're going to have to take time off when you have the baby, aren't you?" Mina tries to broach the subject lightly.

"Yea, but I just found out today so maybe I'll tell him in a few days? Or I could actually tell him at the gala… No, after the gala, that'll work, right? I don't really know when the appropriate time would be to tell your boss of like a week, that you're pregnant and will need time off when the baby comes. What if he just fires me or something because I'm not even qualified for the position and this'll just be something else against me?" Serena starts to panic a little at the thought of losing her job with a baby on the way.

"He won't do that, I can tell by what you've already told me about him. Besides that would be bad for his business if he fired you after you told him you're pregnant. You know, if this gala/date that you guys have goes well he might actually be okay with the fact that you're pregnant. Not all guys are as bad as you think they are" Mina winks at her friend. "Now, I'm going to grab some ice cream for the two of us and we're going to have a Girls' Night tonight, okay!" Mina jumps up and heads to the kitchen to get everything. "Amy get in here, we're watching a movie and I'm making ice cream sundaes!" Mina yells down the hall.

Soon the three of them are curled up on the couch eating ice cream and flipping through the channels trying to find something to watch. "Okay, so there's officially nothing good on TV. How about we watch something that's recorded on the TiVo box, then? Ooh, there was a new episode of Bones! Can we watch please? I'm sure you guys will love it, it's about a forensic anthropologist who works for the FBI to solve murders." Serena and Mina just look at Amy, their faces asking what's in it for us? "Plus, her partner is extra steamy."

"Oh, okay Ames" the girls reply, and Amy rolls her eyes and chuckles as she starts the show.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 6

By: Serena Chibi

Date: May 30, 2011

``` Trying to get in as many updates as I can since I didn't update for a while there. In the meantime, please REVIEW, I love hearing from you all and it makes me want to write more Oh & I went back to change a few things, Serena's brother's name is no longer Shingo it's Sammy, I had to change it to a more American name like the rest of them.

Serena took it upon herself to be extra productive at work for the next week, just in case Mr. Shields didn't take her news too well. Getting the advertisements for campaigns that weren't for a few months would certainly be in her favor right now. After she finished the posters for her third campaign this week, Serena grabs the poster boards and heads towards the elevator. She feels a stomach cramp but thinks nothing of it, chalking it up to hunger pains.

She takes the elevator down to the third floor and wanders into the copy room.

"Hello? Ron, are you here?" She looks around the room for Ron, the man who handles all the copy work and faxes for the company.

"Hi, Miss. Tsukino! How are you doing today?" Ron says as he walks into the copy room behind Serena.

"Oh, I'm good Ron, thanks for asking. I just have some more campaign posters I need you to prepare for Mr. Shields to look at. If you're not busy with something else, that is."

"Certainly, I'll take care of them for you. When do you need them all by?"

"Tomorrow by this time, if that's possible? I know it's a little rushed since it's already 8:00pm and you're probably about to leave but-" Serena says.

"Miss. Tsukino, don't worry about it. Your posters will be ready to go when you need them. Just stop by sometime after… say, 6:00 tomorrow night and they'll be here for you. I have to leave by 9 o'clock though cause my wife is making dinner." Ron tells Serena with a smile.

"Thanks, Ron. I appreciate it SO much. See you tomorrow!" Serena yells to Ron as she heads out the door.

_Okay, so off to the grocery store really quick; I need milk, eggs, and bread for breakfast tomorrow morning. Just in then out, it'll be like five minutes, ten tops. Maybe grab some McDonald's or something to eat on the way home? _"You're hungry, huh?" Serena starts talking to the baby growing inside her as she walks out the front doors of Shields Inc.

At that moment, Darien happened to be making his way down the hallway when he saw his blonde-haired coworker leaving as well. _Wow, she's here pretty late tonight, especially compared to everyone else. _A small smile appears on his face as he makes his way out the front door and to his black Lamborghini waiting in the parking lot. _She's something else, definitely a hard worker though. _Darien thinks to himself as he makes his fifteen minute drive home.

Serena decides to just go the little grocery store close to her house instead of her usual all-around market which was closer to work. While navigating through the aisles she finds the milk and eggs, then makes her way to the bread aisle. As she rounds the corner of the aisle she sees long black hair going around the corner at the opposite end of the aisle. She freezes where she is and her mind is suddenly moving at ninety-miles an hour. She takes a deep breath and tries to calm herself as she hurriedly grabs her multi-grain bread and proceeds to the checkout closest to the door. _It can't possibly be him, I left him over three hours away. I'm just seeing things, I really need to go home and get some sleep. _Serena tries to rationalize the situation as she practically runs to her car. She throws the groceries in the passenger seat next to her and speeds towards her house making sure there isn't anyone following her home.

Making a mad dash for the apartment, Serena locks the door behind her and flicks on all the lights quickly. She puts the groceries in the fridge and cabinets, then grabbing her phone she go to her bedroom and lies down. The rippling of her waterbed soothes Serena like a child in a rocker, and she feels her eyes growing heavy. After lying there for another twenty minutes, she texts Amy that she's home and going to sleep. Then she falls asleep curled up and holding her cell phone in her hand.


	8. Chapter 8 Part I

Chapter 8 Part I

By: Serena Chibi

Date: May 31, 2011

``` Figured I'd post the first part of the next chapter due to all the reviews. I'm going to work, so I'll probably post part II tomorrow. Please REVIEW, I love hearing from you all and it makes me want to write more. Thanks to everyone who's been reading. This is my first fanfic and I'm very happy to see quite a few people actually following it Stephumz: I think I'm going to leave Nephrite, Jadeite, and Kunzite's names the same. Maybe I'll have them explain how they ended up with those names instead of your typical: Joey, Rob, Etc?

"You really should start going to the doctor so they can monitor your progress through this pregnancy, Serena." Amy tells Serena, who is trying to get ready for the gala tonight.

"I know, Amy. I called my OB/GYN already and I'm seeing him in like five days okay? That's going to be on… Thursday, I think?" Serena stops and looks at the ceiling as she counts the days in her head. "Yea, Thursday."

"Oh okay, I just want to make sure you take care of yourself, that's all." Amy replies as she walks out of the bathroom, leaving Serena to get ready.

After putting on the black dress that Mina and her picked out, Serena does her makeup. Getting to her hair, Serena pulls out a ceramic straight-iron and makes her hair pin-straight, then grabbing a silver butterfly clip she secures the top third of her hair behind her head. After fastening the buckles on her black-satin stilettos she makes her way to the front door.

"Bye, Amy. I'll see you when I get home tonight, don't wait up for me!" Serena calls out as she leaves the apartment for the night.

Arriving at work at 6:00pm, Serena was quite a bit early so she decides to work on a poster from this morning. _well, turning in three campaign posters this week wouldn't be too bad, now would it? _Serena thinks to herself while she starts to sketch out what she wants on the poster. _Maybe bubble letters? No, that's too school-y. Oh, maybe some block letters for this one? _She sketches out the title in block letters. _Yea, that looks good. _She smiles, then starts on a background for the poster. _Oh, I know, swirls of some kind!_

Darien was nervous to say the least. He'd just spent almost an hour getting ready to go. He looks at the clock: _I really have to go now or I'm going to be late… Am I forgetting anything?_ He looks around, trying to see if he may have forgotten something. "Oh, the invite!" He runs to his nightstand and grabs the invitation, then looking around one last time, he walks out the door.

He makes his way to Serena's office, all the while checking his breath and smoothing out his tux. Darien finally gets to Serena's office, just to find her resting her head on the desk. He walks around the side of the desk to wake her, but as he walks around her desk he sees her face. _God, she's beautiful. _He thinks to himself as he takes in her beauty for a second. Then he reaches out a hand and lightly shakes her arm. She wakes up and looks around for a second then back to Darien. Blushing and apologizing for having fallen asleep, she gathers up her drawing supplies and shoves them into her desk drawer..

"No, that's alright. I mean, I know you've been putting in a lot of extra hours this week. So, it's understandable that you'd fall sleep at work." Darien laughs as he looks at the poster she was obviously working on as she fell asleep. "Maybe you should slow down a little; you're way ahead of everyone else. That is a good thing, but I don't want you to get too far ahead of yourself, you need to take care of yourself too." He smiles.

_Why does everyone keep telling me that? I mean, do they know something I don't know? _Serena ponders what Darien just said for a moment. "Thanks, Mr. Shields. I'll be sure to spend a little more time at home, on myself from now on."

"And you can just call me Darien from now on, I kind of hate being called Mr. Shields. It's just too formal to me. Are you ready to go then, or do you have something else you need to do?"

"Oh, no, I'm definitely ready to go." Serena stands up next to her desk and smoothes out her dress a little, then pushes her hair behind her shoulders.

Darien just stands there looking at Serena. He tries to take in how she looks without being too obvious, but it doesn't work. His eyes travel from her stiletto-d feet and up her legs to the little black dress. While she's straightening out her dress he can't help but notice her curves. He looks away for a second. _Calm down, breathe boy. _He mentally tells himself. _As much as I want to do something right now… No, we have to go to the gala. Stupid gala. Okay, no, not stupid gala, just stupid hormones._ He looks back and reaches a hand out for Serena to grab. "Let's get this show on the road then."

Serena reaches out, grabbing Darien's hand she feels a slight tingle in her fingers. _A spark. Was that a spark? _She felt like a young schoolgirl again, like she was finally holding hands with her biggest crush. As they make their way down the hall, Serena looks up and sees his black hair then blue eyes. She looks back to where she's walking so she doesn't trip or something. _He sure is handsome, I hope I don't ruin this. _Thinking to herself, she climbs in the passenger seat of Darien's car.

The twenty-minute car ride is pretty much silent other than the radio playing faintly. Serena looks at her hands in her lap, at least that's what it looks like to Darien. In reality she's looking at the tiny bulge in her stomach as she thinks to herself. _I hope tonight goes well. I can't really afford for it not to go well, I need this job. You just need to stop misbehaving though, little one. No more of your antics. _She thinks, while referring to the horrible hunger pains she'd been getting every now and then.

Arriving at the event, Darien parks the car and opens Serena's passenger door. He grabs her hand and leads her up the stairs and into the ball room. Serena looks wide-eyed for a moment as she looked at the outside of the building, let alone the inside. She'd been to events like this before with Seiya but it's been quite a while since the last one she went to. She looks at how many people are here, then her stomach growls loud enough for her date to hear.

"good thing food's already been served" Darien laughs, "lets go grab you a plate".

Serena follows Darien down the line of food as they each pile food on their plates. Getting to their table, Serena sits down and looks at her plate. _Some Honey-Dijon chicken, stuffing, a little rice and some fresh veggies. Looks good enough, huh? _She eats her food slower than normal, matching pace with Darien's eating, and enjoying the fact that the baby was allowing her to eat as she pleased right now.


	9. Chapter 8 Part II

Chapter 8 Part II

By: Serena Chibi

Date: June 2, 2011

``` Here's the second part. Sorry it took a little longer than expected, I had it written but got caught up with work and couldn't post it until EARLY this morning (like 1:00am). I think everyone had a kind of idea how this one's going to play out ;) A little short but as everyone can tell, it is the second part to a single chapter. Enjoy :)

After Serena finishes eating she looks up to find Darien looking out on the dance floor. He's seems lost in watching everyone float around on the floor. Obviously feeling her eyes on him, Darien turns around and asks her to dance. She hesitates for a second but takes his hand as he walks onto the dance floor. She nervously places her arms around his shoulders and he gently holds her waist. Hoping that he doesn't notice the slight bump to her waistline, Serena starts to move with Darien on the floor.

Dancing to the smooth music playing, Darien and Serena float around the floor, in their own little world. _I can't remember the last time I enjoyed myself this much at one of these events. _Serena thinks to herself. _I'm really glad I came tonight. _She lifts her head a little from Darien's shoulder to look at everyone else enjoying themselves on the dance floor. Watching all the happy couples dancing in circles, she smiles to herself and brings her head back to rest on his shoulder.

What she sees next causes her heart to jump into her throat. Dancing a few couples over is Seiya with a small blonde… who looks oddly similar to her. Panicked, Serena pulls her head from Darien's shoulder and turns to walk towards the bathroom. "I'll be right back, sorry." she says as she makes her way through the crowd and into the bathrooms. _Oh god, why here? Why now? _She wonders what to do in order to get out of this situation. Splashing some water on her face, trying to make herself a little calmer, Serena decides upon faking ill.

Returning to the table they ate dinner at, Serena finds Darien waiting patiently in a chair. "Are you alright? You look a little pale, like you just saw a ghost or something." He asks her while standing in order to feel her forehead.

"I'm sorry I just don't feel good, I guess" Serena replies while touching her head lightly as if she has a headache. _I think that was convincing enough, maybe he bought it?_ she thinks to herself, and she realizes it worked as Darien grabs his jacket from the chair behind him.

"That's alright, let's get you home. I'm not much for these things anyways, I mean I already know everyone that's invited to them so there's not really any new contacts to be made anyhow." Darien drapes his jacket over Serena's shoulders, "don't need you getting sicker now do we?"

Arriving at the car, Darien helps Serena into the passenger seat then climbs into the driver's. "Do you want me to just drop you off at home? If you're really not feeling good, I can do that and pick you up in the morning…. For work." Darien kind of fumbles the sentence out, he felt almost as nervous as asking her to come to the gala tonight. When she didn't answer, Darien turns to look at her. "Serena?" He then notices her eyes are closed. "You are a tired thing lately, aren't you." he smiles to himself and grabs the jacket she placed on her lap. After pulling the jacket up to her shoulders and covering her up, Darien starts his car and drives them back to work. He would've taken her home but he didn't know where home was for her, so he decided that returning her to her car would probably be better than waking her to ask where she lived.

Finally back in the parking lot at work, Darien parks his car next to Serena's. He looks at her, sleeping so peacefully, and doesn't want to wake her up. _How did I end up with an angel in my presence? All those nights of wishing and praying, finally answered. _He looks at her then to his car's clock: _9:43? That's not even late enough for me to be tired at all, how is she passed out? _He then reaches over and shakes her awake. "Hey, I think it's time for you to wake up. Sorry, but we're at your car and I can't really drive you home from here."

Serena's eyes open slowly, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to fall asleep on you.. Especially not for the second time in one night."

"It's fine really, you should probably spend a little more time sleeping instead of working for a while though. I mean, just until you're well rested, enough to stay awake while working on your projects." He jokes with Serena, then gets out to open her car door.

"Thank you for such a nice evening" Serena smiles at Darien then climbs into her car. "Thank you, too" Darien barely manages to get in a smile at Serena before she closes her car door. He stands there staring after her car as she drives off. _Maybe she doesn't like me as much as I thought she might, although I am used to not having to work to get a girl. _Darien finds himself lost in thought as he drives home.

Walking in the front door, Serena hears the TV going. _Okay, I guess Amy's still awake then. _She drops her keys and purse on the counter then walks towards her bedroom, when she hears Amy. "You're home early, I thought you'd be out all night with Mr. Shields, err- _Darien. _How was your night then, have fun hopefully."

"Yea it was fun right up until I saw my ex there. Don't want to talk about it though, I'm going to bed. Night, Amy." Serena closes her bedroom door before Amy can start pestering her with questions. She just wanted to go to sleep, and dream a nice dream… Of perhaps, her and Darien? _See, that's a dream worth having. No more nightmares; just me and Darien on the dance floor enjoying ourselves with no one else around. _Stripping next to her bed, Serena climbs in and wraps her blankets up around her neck then drifts into a peaceful slumber.


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

By: Serena Chibi

Date: June 3, 2011

``` Still figuring how I want this all to play out. Loving the reviews from everyone, which is part of why I have no problem finding the time to write more of this. If I have any typos in this one, please don't get frustrated because I am finishing this chapter at nearly 2:00am, no doubt I'll take another look over it after work in the morning though. Enjoy

Waking up the following morning, Serena is surprised to find that she actually doesn't feel well. Head throbbing and stomach hurting, she decides to lie in bed for the day instead of going to work. After all, she was told to sleep until she felt rested enough to stay awake while doing her projects. She spent the entire day, up until almost 8:00pm lying in bed and sleeping until she decided to go get some food.

She hadn't really felt hungry all day, probably because she didn't feel well and had actually slept through all her cravings for food. Walking into the kitchen she starts rummaging through the cabinets when she spots what she wants: strawberry frosted shredded wheat. _Wow, a kid that actually likes healthy stuff too. Imagine that. _Grabbing the box she goes to grab the milk but thinks twice about it since she was sick this morning. _Last think I want is milk sitting in my stomach now. _She returns to bed with her box of dry cereal.

Darien showed up late to work that morning and decided he'd go check on Serena. Walking into her office he's surprised to find that she isn't there. The campaign poster she was working on the previous night is resting on her desk but everything else seems untouched. _Huh, I guess she had a pretty bad bug then. _He thinks to himself as he goes to sit in her chair. He takes a quick look around her desk and doesn't see any personal items. _Usually I can find out virtually anything I want to know about someone by just sitting behind their desk but nothing when it comes to her. No pictures of family or pets or anything like that. No post it's on her calendar… Oh wait, here's one: Appointment at 8:30am on Thursday. That's in four days. I wonder what the appointment is for, hopefully nothing too bad. _He then looks towards the garbage can under her desk, pulling it from it's hiding place. Looking at it's contents, he only sees a scrap of paper from the campaign poster she was working on. _Man, you're going to be one tough cookie to crack aren't you? _He thinks to himself as he gets up to leave her office. Taking one last look around to see if he missed anything, Darien makes his way up to his own office.

"So, how'd last night go?" Andrew pokes his head into Darien's office.

"Huh?" Darien looks up from his paperwork with a confused look on his face.

"You know, last night, going to the gala with Serena. How'd it go? Did you guys have fun, or were you your usual kill-joy self?" Andrew laughs at his own joke.

"Yea, it was a good time. We got there just in time for dinner, then danced for a while." Darien says.

"Sounds like fun." Andrew smiles at Darien's obvious happiness.

"It was, but we had to actually cut the evening short because she didn't feel well. Probably ate something or something like that." Darien tells Andrew as he starts flipping through some papers on his desk.

"Hmm, that's unfortunate but at least it seems like you had a great time with her. Are you going to go out with her again? Maybe even date her, despite your little 'policy' of dating employees or coworkers?" Andrew prods.

"Perhaps, but only if I'm sure that she's interested in me. I mean, she seemed interested at first but she was asleep by the time I arrived to pick her up from work, then she fell asleep again in the car on our way back. Then I barely got to say goodbye, let alone maybe give her a goodnight kiss... You should've seen how she looked last night, she was gorgeous! She had on this little black number, it showed off her back perfectly. And her legs, they go on for miles and are so small but strong…" Darien lets out a low groan. _Definitely wouldn't mind having those wrapped around me at night._

"Whoa, dude not now. As much as I enjoy the fact that you are actually interested in _that_ again, you're gonna have to share those thoughts with someone else. Serena is like a sister to me, always has been always will be; so, eww!" Andrew does a little quiver for emphasis. "But I do wish you the best, she could use a good guy and that's just what you are."

"Thanks, Andy. I do appreciate your vote of confidence." Darien looks up from his paperwork. "I do enjoy talking with you but I really have to get to work on some one this paperwork. I have to double check the balance sheets and everything still, so-"

"No worries, I'll see you later" Andrew waves and walks out the door.

Darien returns to his paperwork and thinks for a second, _She could use a good guy_? "What do you mean, she could use a good-" Looking up, Darien realizes that Andrew is already long gone. "guy." He returns to his paperwork thinking about the comment. He couldn't seem to remember who Serena said she was dating before coming to work here.

The following morning, Serena feels quite a bit better. Grabbing a bagel she hurries off to work grabbing some paperwork before anyone notices she's there. She was trying to stay ahead on everything despite feeling under the weather. She goes home and spends most of the day there, finishing the work she brought home. Having a little bit of the pasta that Amy had brought home from Lita's house for dinner, Serena settles in front of the TV with her work. Flipping through the last of her projects, Serena remembers that she forgot to get her posters back from Ron the other day.

Hitting the 'info' button on her TV, she notices that she has plenty of time to pick them up tonight but as she lies down she takes a nap for an hour and half. Waking up, she looks at the time and hurries out the door to get her posters tonight. _I only have like twenty minutes before Ron leaves! I really hope he hasn't left yet. _She thinks to herself as she speeds to work.

As she parking her car, Serena notices Darien's car and the three security guards' cars and what looks to be three other employees' cars. _I wonder if one of those is Ron? _Serena walks past the security guard just within the front door and smiles politely, saying hello to him. Then passing two employees chatting as they go to walk out the front door, she turns toward the copy room. Seeing that the room is almost completely dark, Serena knows that Ron has obviously left already. _Darn it, I really wanted to leave those posters on Darien's desk tonight so he'd know I was actually working even though I haven't been here! _Serena mentally kicks herself but decides to head up to her office. _Might as well check if I have any new messages or notices on my desk while I'm here._

Pulling his focus from his final sheet of paper for the night, Darien looks out one of his office windows and notices Serena's car is parked almost right next to his. _Huh, someone's here late. _He laughs to himself. _Actually, looks like two people are working late. _He notices the other car in the lot, in one of the closest spots to the building. _Maybe I'll go see Serena before I leave? Heck, I'll just go see her after I'm done looking over this sheet._

Serena sits at her desk and pulls out a drawer to put her completed work in. _There perfect. _Wondering why her papers won't lie flat, Serena pulls them up to find one of her pregnancy tests in the bottom of the drawer. _Must've fallen in my drawer when I was trying to throw them all in the trash. _She grabs the test and looks at it, then her wastebasket. Empty. "Well, I can't really hide you in an empty wastebasket now can I?" She then tucks the test in her jacket pocket and grabs her book she'd forgotten the other night. _Dream Catcher by Stephen king, how could I forget that? _Rolling her eyes, she flicks off the light in her office and closes the door behind her.

"Did it get darker in here or is it just me?" Serena slowly locks her door as her eyes adjust to the dimness of the hallway. "This is just a little too creepy for me." She whispers to herself as she turns against her door. In her nervousness, her stomach starts to do flips making her feel ill again. Looking down, she apologizes to the baby then tries to find her phone in her pocket, when she feels someone grab her wrists.

Pinning her against the door, she hears a whisper. "Hello my angel."


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

By: Serena Chibi

Date: June 5, 2011

``` One of the harder chapters I've had to write just because so much happens. You'll have to read to see what exactly happens. I feel like I should point out that I'm not a Seiya-hater or anything I just made him the bad guy in this particular story. I definitely love Darien more than Seiya though, sorry to anyone who thinks otherwise. Either way, enjoy another late-night chapter

Trying to feel the buttons on her phone for a speed-dial, Serena curses out loud because she can't remember which buttons are which on her Blackberry. With her eyes on the ground, she notices the shoes of the person pinning her: perfectly polished black dress shoes. Suddenly her right hand is slammed against the door frame, causing her to drop her phone. _Not that it was helping me much anyway,_ she laughs in her head before the panic returns.

Looking at the dress shoes, then the pressed pants and top of a black suit, Serena finally looks up into her captor's face. Not even having to squint in the dimly lit hallway, she knows who it is. "Seiya." Serena tries her best to sound confident but her voice betrays her.

"Aw, I've missed that little quiver you get in your voice when you know you're in trouble." Seiya whispers, moving his face ever so close to hers and smiling slightly as she tries to push her head further back and away from him. "What was that little nickname that you said they gave you back in school?"

Darien was finally done with his work and he looks at the clock 10:03pm. "Not too late I guess but definitely later than everyone else here. I wonder if Serena is still here." He turns in his seat to look out the window again. "Yep, she's still here… and so is that other car, who's is that?"

Taking the steps down because I he didn't get a chance to go running this morning, Darien stops on Serena's floor. Walking up to the desk that Molly is usually working at, Darien hears talking and ducks behind the wall. Trying to look around the wall at who's there, he makes out Serena's shape pressed against the door and can tell the other is a man. _Of course she has a boyfriend, that's why she's not interested._ Then he crouches there as he listens to the conversation.

"Bunny, that's what it was, wasn't it? Funny because I was trying to figure out what animal you remind me of, and that would be very suitable to you. All scared, and jumpy, you're definitely a bunny." Seiya smirks in Serena's face and she just looks back at him.

"I'm not a bunny anymore, not since I left you almost four months ago." Serena spits back in his face. Hearing this from behind the wall a few doors down, Darien realizes why she needed a job a few months ago.

"See, you somehow managed to slip under my radar and make it this far, meaning I just had to do some hunting. Funny, because I was in town for some stupid gala for large corporations and I didn't even want to go. But lo-and-behold, I go and who should I happen to see, other than my bunny who escaped." Seiya sounds a little angrier now, "Even better, she's dancing with some other guy. Letting him lay his hands on her and no doubt climbing into bed with him."

"No, I didn't." Serena manages out between quiet sobs.

"No, what? No, you didn't let him touch you? No, you didn't enjoy it? What?" Seiya pushes his body closer to hers. "You probably let him go all the way, huh? Touching your body everywhere." He holds both her arms with one hand and moves his other along her body roughly.

"I didn't do anything with him, with anyone." She whimpers, "I swear."

Seiya stops his rough handling of Serena's body when his hand touches her stomach. Surprise is apparent on his face as he looks down then up into her face. "Were you planning on telling me?"

"Why would I tell you? I have no reason to," Serena seizes the moment to manipulate Seiya, leaning as close as she can to his ear, she whispers, "As far as I'm concerned it has no father." At that moment she feels a pain in her stomach but hides it from Seiya.

_ "_You bitch, it's mine as much as yours and I have a right to it!_" _Seiya watches a flicker of pain come across her face. "The truth hurts, doesn't it? You see, you seem to forget how easily I can break you. You're leaving with me and that's final." Seiya hisses at her.

"I'll never leave with you. You're nothing but a self-righteous bastard. You don't care about anyone or anything other than yourself! All those years of letting you break me like glass are finally over. I left and you can't deal with the fact that someone is finally telling you 'no', so you track me down to what, scare me into leaving with you? Well, it's not happening Seiya, not this time!" Serena is angry and scared at this point, yelling at Seiya and trying to wish away the pain.

Darien had been sitting behind the wall, determined to let her handle the situation. He'd step in if anything went horrible wrong or if she were hurt. He couldn't be sure if Seiya had a weapon on him or not, and he wouldn't dare risk it. He had his phone ready to call his security guards when Seiya became so frustrated with Serena that his anger got the best of him and he slapped her full-force across the face. Serena screamed in pain as she tried to knee Seiya but before her leg could come in contact with him, he was gone.

Opening her eyes, Serena is surprised to find Darien on the ground with Seiya under him. It looks as if Darien may actually have Seiya under control when everything goes black.


	12. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

By: Serena Chibi

Date: June 30, 2011

``` Sorry for the delay, I just got a new puppy and she demands quite a bit of attention. I've also been in and out of the hospital and doctor's appointments, so the last thing on my mind has been my story, sorry. Thank you all for the great reviews though Hope this chapter isn't a disappointment, although there may be some grammatical errors because I haven't been able to do much writing let alone editing for a while.

Darien hears a small thud while he's wrestling Seiya to the ground. Taking a moment to look at Serena, who is now lying against the wall, Darien is caught off guard as Seiya takes the opportunity to punch him as hard as he can in the side of the face. With his vision blurring, Darien finds himself on the ground writhing in pain, as Seiya runs down the hallway. Trying to refocus his eyes, Darien crawls towards Serena and attempts to wake her. Being completely unsuccessful, he stumbles to his feet and scoops her up in his arms.

He moves as fast as he can to put her in the passenger seat of his car and rushes down the street to the hospital. Picking her up to place her on the gurney, Darien is bombarded with a million questions that he can't answer.

"Do you know what happened? Did she hit her head? Are you family? What is her name, for admittance?" The nurse asks all at once.

His head still spinning a little, "Serena Tsukino, is her name" he answers the one question he can make out at the time. He was holding onto the gurney until it reached the E.R. doors and was forced to let go. He moves slowly over to the chairs in the waiting room and sits in the one closest to the doors. Looking to his lap, Darien notices blood on one of his arms and goes to the bathroom to clean up.

He takes in his image in the mirror, his hair was slightly ruffled, his lip was bleeding and he had a large bruise forming on the left side of his face. Washing his hands and arms then splashing cold water over his face, Darien yawns. Returning to his seat and seeing the clock on the wall, Darien tries to decide whether or not to wake Amy and let her know what happened/is happening with Serena.

Concluding that Amy should be informed, Darien decides to call Nephrite and tell him to call her. _At least if Nephrite calls Amy, she'll have someone to cry with if she needs. Plus, I don't have to deal with him chewing my head off for letting her cry to me. It's a win-win situation… Kind of… _He looks back to the E.R. doors while his phone calls Nephrite.

"Hello?" Darien hears Nephrite pick up the phone quietly on the other end.

"I need your help with something, well actually someone. I need you to call Amy." Darien replies.

"Okay." Darien can hear Nephrite practically jump up in bed at the notion. "Wait, what do you need me to call Amy for? Did something happen? I mean it must be pretty important since it's almost eleven at night." Nephrite rambles on the other end of the phone.

"Yea, something happened to Serena. I don't really know what, we're at the hospital right now and the doctors are still looking at her." Deciding to spare the details on the night in case Serena didn't want anyone knowing, Darien tries to explain what happened. "She was fighting with her Ex at work when I went to visit her at her office. I couldn't really make out what they were arguing about." _Not an entire lie. _"He started to get kind of loud so I stepped in, we had words and when I turned around she was on the ground."

"Okay, I'll give Amy a call and let her know. You're at the hospital down the street from work right? Do you want me to come up there?" Kunzite asks.

"Yea, I'm right by work but I'm okay waiting here by myself. Just call Amy then see what she needs because she'll probably need you more than I do." Darien hears footsteps and sees a nurse walking towards him. "I'm gonna go, it looks like I'm finally getting an update." Darien speak quieter into his phone as Kunzite says bye, then hangs up.

"Are you Mr. Tsukino?" the nurse looks at him quizzically, noticing that he doesn't have a ring on his finger nor did the girl.

"Oh no, I'm Mr. Shields, her boss and- well it's complicated." Darien adverts his eyes.

"Is there a Mr. Tsukino or any direct relatives I can contact?" the nurse tries to be as polite as possible. "Because I can only give information to direct family or relatives."

"I don't think she has any direct family, I mean she listed her closest friend as her emergency contact. I just want to know if she's okay and what happened. Please?" Darien looks at the nurse with shimmering blue eyes.

The nurse seems to show a little pity on him as she says, "Okay, I'm going to make an exception just this once because you're the one who brought her in, though. She's doing better now, we've managed to stabilize her and she should be waking up any moment now."

"So, what exactly happened? Why was she bleeding?" Darien wanted to know everything he possibly could about what happened.

"well about that-" the nurse is cut off as Amy and Kunzite come walking as fast as they can up to the nurse and Darien.

"Oh my god, what happened? Is she okay?" Amy asks quickly.

"She was just about to tell me." Darien tries his best to not sound upset or irritated but doesn't do too well at hiding it.

"Your friend should be fine, she's been stabilized." the nurse get out before being cut off again.

"How is the baby?" Amy cuts off the nurse's speech. Kunzite looks stunned by what he just heard and looks at Darien. _Did I just hear what I think I did? Did Amy just say that Serena is pregnant? _Darien's thoughts seem to be slowing down at the notion that the woman he was trying to date is pregnant.

"Unfortunately, due to complications _possibly_ triggered from stress and a few other factors I am not at liberty to mention, Mrs. Tsukino appears to have had a miscarriage. That is what caused the blood that you were asking about and accounts for why she passed out."

"There was a lot of blood though, was it all due to the… miscarriage?" Darien asks slowly.

"It was, more or less. It appears that she had somewhat of an ectopic pregnancy. The embryo didn't actually make it entirely into the uterus, it was still in a fallopian tube and that rupturing is what caused the large amount of bleeding you saw. It's somewhat of a miracle that you were there when it happened otherwise there's no telling what may have happened to her. And unfortunately, due to the tearing, we had to remove the remainder of the tube. It'll be difficult but not impossible for her to conceive in the future. These are all things that I will have to tell Mrs. Tsukino upon waking as well." The nurse looks a little more somber after delivering the news. "We'll keep her overnight for examination but she should be okay to go tomorrow afternoon. If one of you could arrange your schedule to pick her up that would be best because she did just have surgery and will have some painkillers for the next few days, so she shouldn't be driving."

"Well Amy, I was thinking of just staying here for the night, just in case her Ex decides to show up again. That is if that's okay with you, considering you're the one who's 'say' really counts here, while she's out." Darien looks to Amy hoping for the answer he wants.

Amy looks at Darien then to Nephrite. "Yea, that should be fine. But this means I'm trusting you to keep a close eye on her tonight and to get her home and settled in safely, do you understand me?"

Feeling as if he'd just been spoken to like a child being given his chores, Darien gives Amy a small smile. "Thank you, Amy. I'll make sure she's okay tonight and that she gets settled in and relaxed when I take her home in the morning. Don't worry about a thing, oh and don't forget you have that big meeting in the morning with a representative from Hale Tech to speak about the merger. By the time you get out of your meeting I'll probably have Serena home and settled."

Amy asks the nurse if they can see Serena yet, and is told that she can but she is still asleep. After seeing Serena and making sure she is okay, Amy exit's the room to find Darien and says goodbye to him. Giving Darien a hug, Amy tells him "thank you for being here and getting her to the hospital in time. I can't even imagine if I'd lost her; she's my best friend. Thank you for everything."

After saying goodbye to Amy and Nephrite, Darien approaches Serena's room. Poking his head in the door, he tries to walk as quietly as possible to a chair about a foot away from the bed. _Who could possibly want to hurt you?_ He can't help but think as he looks at Serena sound asleep. _You look so innocent, I swear I won't let anyone else hurt you._ Darien finds himself surprised by his own thoughts; having never really felt the need to protect anyone like this.

Settling into the chair next to the hospital bed, Darien soon finds himself falling asleep. Taking one last look at Serena and her vitals on the monitors, he finally drifts off into sleep.


	13. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

By: Serena Chibi

Date: August 18, 2011

**I'm hopefully back to stay now because I've been laid up and thinking about this story. I finally found time to finish the next chapter, so here it is Hopefully it isn't too disappointing, and I realize it's really angst-y right now but it'll change soon-ish. Anyways, enjoy the new chapter and hopefully there aren't too many grammatical or spelling errors. Thank you to everyone who has reviewed the last chapter, and I'm feeling quite a bit better now than I did last month.

The hospital door creaks open and Darien jerks awake. He had fallen asleep leaning forward in his seat with his head and arms resting on the bed next to Serena, so his sudden movement wakes Serena as well. Serena looks at Darien then to the door where a blue haired woman walks quietly into the room.

"Amy?" Serena ask groggily. Having mistaken the nurse as her friend, the nurse moves to correct her.

"That's not Amy, Serena. That's a nurse." Darien corrects Serena before the nurse can.

"Serena, I am Nurse Michelle. I was just doing the morning rounds and came to see how you're doing this morning. So, how are you feeling this morning? Are you feeling any really bad aches or pains?", Michelle asks with a polite smile on her face.

"Um, I feel better for the most part. Um… I feel a little pain in my stomach still" Serena lifts the sheet covering her to look at the hospital dressing on her stomach. "Um, what exactly happened? I just remember a really bad pain in my stomach, and seeing you, then nothing." Serena looks at Darien with a confused expression on her face.

"That pain in your stomach was actually from you having a miscarriage. You must've blacked out from the pain and loss of blood, which isn't unusual." The nurse figures now is just as good a time as any, to let the patient know about her condition. "As a result of this, you lost the baby as well as one of your fallopian tubes. Obviously you have a dramatically decreased chance of conceiving in the future but there is still a chance. I'd recommend consulting your OB/GYN before trying to conceive again, though." The nurse studies the face of the woman before her. "Are you understanding everything I've just stated?" Nurse Michelle asks, trying to see if Serena understood and looking for some sign that she did.

"Yes, I understand what you're saying.." Serena replies quietly. Clenching the blanket on her lap, her eyes start to water and she looks at her hands. The nurse quietly excuses herself from the room after seeing the reaction to the news and closes the door quietly behind her.

Darien looks to Serena curled in a ball, facing away from him and crying in the bed. He tries to think of a way to soothe her and rubs his hand up and down the side of her arm. Slowly he can see her start to relax a little more as her rubs her arm and tells her it'll all be okay. Being unable to imagine how it feels to go through what she's going through, Darien settles on remaining quiet on the subject. After a few minutes she gathers the blanket around herself and grabbing a bag of clothes that Amy dropped off the night before, Serena excuses herself to the bathroom.

Looking in the mirror, Serena criticizes her reflection and tosses cold water on her face. Taking advantage of the fact that her face was already wet, she lets the last of her tears fall then wipes all the moisture away with a cloth. Looking in her bag for something to wear, she sees her baby-blue sweatpants and grabs them, then manages to find a white tank-top to wear. Seeing that Amy forgot to pack a hairbrush Serena runs her fingers through her hair trying to sort out the mess until she feels comfortable with her appearance. Reaching up to touch her slightly bruised cheek, she winces. Fortunately it wasn't too noticeable. She felt incredibly achy and sore from being grabbed so harshly by Seiya. Looking at her stomach, she feels slight sorrow for the unborn child but feels more angry with herself and Seiya than anything else. Grabbing the matching jacket to the sweat pants, Serena decides to put it on to hide the slight baby bump that she had started to develop.

She opens the door to the bathroom, then silently emerges from her hiding place. She hadn't meant to cry in front of Darien but she just couldn't help it; she was just so angry and hurt by the information she was given and the events leading to her hospitalization. _So, I'm broken in other words. I can't have anymore kids, and if I do somehow manage to get pregnant, I run a higher risk of miscarriage. So, either way, I'm screwed. This is just great! Who could possibly want to be with someone like me now? A young woman with a crazy-ex (like clinically insane!-ex) and virtually no chance at having a future, at least as far as children is concerned. That sounds a little like a dead-end relationship, if the guy ever wants to have a family._ Serena tries to shake her thoughts from earlier out of her head. If a guy didn't want to be with her just because she couldn't have kids, then she didn't need him to begin with. Then the fact that Darien just received the same news as her popped to mind. _What will he think of me now? He must be angry that I didn't tell him, but it's not like I wasn't going to._

She looks towards the door to see Darien watching her intently. She tries her hardest to read his emotions but doesn't sense anger of any kind… She looks in his eyes for a moment and senses sorrow… _He feels sorry for me… So maybe he isn't angry? I mean, it's not like we were actually a couple or anything, right?_ She looks away just as quickly as she had looked at him.

"I should probably take you home now. I mean, I can't imagine you'd want to spend anymore time sitting in that uncomfortable hospital bed, huh?" Darien tries to sound light-hearted and somewhat cheery.

Appreciating the gesture, Serena smiles at him slightly to show that she actually heard him. "Thanks, I'd really appreciate that. I think sleep will be more restful in my own bed."

Darien reaches out to take Serena's bag from her then offers his other hand to her. He watches as she seems to think about whether or not she should take it. Just as he goes to pull his hand back, Serena lightly grasps it and walks next to him. Looking to the ground, Serena follows next to Darien as he leads her outside to his car.

Darien helps Serena into the passenger seat of his car after hurriedly placing a towel on the seat where the blood from the previous night had dried. The drive back to Serena and Amy's apartment was a quiet one, with Darien and Serena both unsure of what to say. Darien walks Serena to the door of the apartment and waits while she opens the door. Unsure of whether he should stay or go, Darien stands in the doorway quietly for a second until Serena speaks.

"Do you want to come in? You're welcome to stay for a little bit or something. There's not much I can offer in the way of food, other than ice cream, right now though. You're welcome to eat the rest of what's there though; I have to go to the store with Amy anyways." Serena rambles as Darien makes his way into the kitchen, then to the freezer.

"Actually, some ice cream sounds good, right now," He says as he grabs the carton of vanilla ice cream out and opens it. "Looks like there's enough for two, are you sure you don't want any?" He tilts the carton in Serena's direction.

"I'm okay for now, besides I've already pretty much eaten my weight in ice cream in the past week or two." She chuckles to herself a little as she sits at the kitchen table and thumbs through the mail. _No surprises today, no bills or anything else. Looks like today will be a reasonably good day. _Serena thinks to herself as Darien sits in the chair facing her at the table. She feels a little better at the notion that she doesn't have to drain more money out of her account at the moment.

"Yea, about that… The ice cream thing." Darien can't help but ask the questions weighing on his mind. "When were you planning on telling me that you were pregnant?"

Serena looks up to meet Darien's eyes across the table. She feels horrible once she does because he has a look of hurt which is even more exaggerated by his slightly swollen lip and bruised eye. _How did I not notice his injuries before? _She tries to think back to the hospital, but she hadn't really looked at him then. _When did he get hurt?_ While trying to think back to the previous night, she answers his question.

_ "_I was planning on telling you; I just don't know when… I thought it'd put me in a bad position because you just hired me and all. I mean, it's not like I can take a position like the one you gave me, then have to take leave from it only a few months later. That's crazy, not to mention wrong if I would've done that._" _She looks back at the mail, trying to look busy so she doesn't have to look at his face. _Those eyes… They are just so sad right now. If I look back at him, I may just cry. I feel so bad, I shouldn't have put him in this position. Why did he have to get caught up in my crazy, stupid life?_

"So, what then? Were you just planning on taking the job and bringing your kid to work? Or were you just going to put it in daycare all the time? If you were so worried about your job being interfered with by pregnancy, then why not just find a different job; why try for this job to begin with?" Darien can't help but internally wince at his own words and voice.

Feeling overwhelmed and slightly angry at the man before her, Serena's eyes water and she gets up from the table. "I'm sorry, I-" She makes a dash for her bedroom and closes the door behind her. Going to her dresser she pulls out a large T-shirt and strips out of her sweatpants and shirts. Pulling the T-shirt over her head, she pulls her hair out of it's pony and lets it fall over her shoulders. _He hates me. He actually hates me, now. How can I go to work and see him everyday now? The one person who actually seems interested in me and I find a way to make him hate me. I'd be lucky if I still have a job by the end of the week. _She makes it to her bed, only to collapse from exhaustion physically and emotionally, and sobs quietly. _God, how could I be so stupid! I should know by now, nobody actually wants me. I've been so stupid to think that anyone would, let alone someone like him? I've got to be kidding if I thought that he actually liked me._

Darien puts his face in his hands and shakes his head. _Stupid, stupid, stupid. _"Way to be insensitive, Darien." He silently curses himself as he hears the door close and her crying. "That's something that could've waited until… I don't know when, but not right now. Besides, I have no reason to feel like she betrayed me because she didn't. It's not like we're actually together or anything…" _No matter how much I want to be._

He sits at the table stirring a spoon in his ice cream, which remained untouched from the moment Serena left. When it reaches the point of being nothing but soup Darien finally get up and pours the liquid down the sink. _I should really go check on her._ He thinks as he makes his way down the hallway to the only closed door. The sobbing had quieted a few minutes ago. He could tell she was making an attempt at keeping them quiet but the apartment seemed to echo when nothing else was going on in it.

Darien twists the handle cautiously and pushes the door open quietly. "Serena?" he tries to get her attention, but she ignores him. He silently approaches the bed and kneels down at the side of it so he can talk to her. Looking up from his crouching position he finds that she's asleep. He can see the tear stains on her cheeks because of the light flowing in from outside. Noticing the slightly black and blue mark on her cheek, Darien becomes angry. _How could someone do that to you?_ "You're just so beautiful, inside and out. I don't care why you were trying to hide being pregnant from me, I just care that you're safe."

He's only slightly surprised by the words flowing from his mouth, and gives a little smirk. He knew that he was going to fall for her eventually from the moment he first saw her, months ago. Her beauty was otherworldly to him, and her shyness just seemed to enhance that beauty from the inside out. They had talked a little bit before he went away on work but he didn't dare to ask for her number, out of fear for making things awkward. He was her boss after all, and didn't want to compromise that or her work. That didn't stop him from asking Andrew or Nephrite how she was doing practically everyday he was gone, though. Both his friends had laughed on the phone with him, saying that he 'had it bad' for her. He just laughed along with them at the time but had wondered if he really was falling in love with her.

He was beyond confused about how she felt about him, though. One minute she seems interested then the next it was like she didn't even know he existed. He took her to the gala but the night had ended with her practically running out of his car. He didn't hear from her for the few days following the event. _I just really want to know how she feels and sometime soon would be nice. _He thinks to himself and can't help but look her sleeping form over.

His eyes start at her face and make their way down her neck, to her breasts then her waist. Once his eyes reach just below her hips, his heart skips a beat when he notices her T-shirt got hiked up revealing the entirety of her legs and thighs. He could see the faint indent in her shirt signaling where her bikini-cut underwear started. _Get a hold of yourself Darien. Get a hold._ Darien tries to talk his mind out of whatever it may be thinking of doing as his eyes move further down her body.

Darien can't help but stare at her with a certain amount of lust at this point. He kicks himself mentally for his teenage behavior until his eyes make their way back up to her thighs. _What is that?_ Darien sees small yellow marks on her pale skin. _More bruises?_ The lust immediately disappears from his eyes as he moves his head slightly closer to examine the marks. When he sees the pinprick of black within the yellow areas he knows that he thought right. _What is your whole story?_ He leans in to give her forehead a light kiss then returns to his feet.


	14. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

By: Serena Chibi

Date: August 19, 2011

**Another chapter, hopefully not too bad. It's a little longer because there was quite a bit of ground to cover in one chapter. Finally, we are on to the happier things. I just had to lay down all the ground work for future chapters. Enjoy

Darien returns to his feet and moves towards the door when a small voice whispers, "Stay…" He turns around wondering if he was hearing things. "Please stay." Darien walks back to the bedside and is surprised to find Serena's eyes partly open.

Serena had been sound asleep after crying but when Darien had kissed the top of her head to leave, she couldn't help but wake up. Not wanting to be alone for the remainder of the day/night, she tried to think of what to say to stop him from leaving. The only words that came to mind slipped right out of her mouth and seemed to work. As he walked around the bed, she completely forgot any future words she could say.

Darien leans down next to the bed and examines Serena's features, a little confused by the situation. _Why would she want me to stay? Unless… She has to like me somehow, otherwise she wouldn't ask me to stay here with her._ "Okay, I'll stay here then." he strokes her hair a little then moves to sit on the small, cushioned chair in the corner of her room. _Seems comfortable enough._ He thinks as he approaches the chair, when Serena says,

"Could you stay over here?", a long pause. "With me?" Serena can feel her heart racing in her chest as she waits for Darien's reply. What seems like forever is only a few seconds as Darien asks, "On the bed… With you?"

Feeling like his world is spinning, Darien tries to process what just happened and is happening. The woman who drives him crazy with her looks, intellect and mystery was inviting him to her bed.

"Yes, on the bed. With me. If you could?" Serena whispers with a slight shake to her voice. She was confident in asking him to begin with but now she was becoming unsure. _What if he doesn't really want to stay here with me?_

"Yea, I'll stay here and I'll come up on the bed in a second." Darien replies, trying to keep his voice from rasping. He wanted so badly for her to be asking him into her bed for pleasure, not for comfort. Although, he wouldn't deny her comfort if that's what she wanted. He just had to calm down for a second before he dare to climb into bed with her.

Serena sits up to give herself a moment to take in Darien's appearance. His hair and clothes are unkempt; the first few buttons are undone on his shirt and his jeans look really uncomfortable. "You can take off those uncomfortable clothes if you want, I'm sure I probably have an oversized pair of sweats you can borrow or something." She sees his features visibly stiffen. "I can stay under the blankets or something then and you can stay on top of them. If that would make you more comfortable?" His face reads disappointment. "Or you can stay under the blankets and I will stay on top? Whatever would make you more comfortable…" Serena flops backwards on the bed and sighs.

_ "_I'm comfortable with anything" Darien replies rather quickly after seeing Serena's frustration. _Believe me, I'm fine with anything. Feel free to jump me if you want to._ Darien smiles at his own little joke. Standing up, Darien proceeds to unbutton his shirt and pants. Sliding off his shirt and pants, Darien is unaware of Serena admiring his physique out of the corner of her eye.

_God, he's gorgeous! Look at his chest, it's so chiseled… and his abs, oh my god. He's much more muscled than Seiya was when I was with him. His arms are so strong, and his legs are definitely made for running. He has to workout a lot or something because I don't see how anyone else could become the god that he has. Either that or he was blessed with incredible genes._ Serena cuts her thoughts short as he approaches the opposite side of the bed in nothing but his boxers.

"Sorry but I like to sleep in my boxers. Is that okay?" Darien asks from the other side of the bed as he cautiously moves to lie down beside Serena.

"That's fine. I mean I'm used to guys just sleeping in boxers anyways." Serena blurts out before even thinking about it, then brings her hand to her face as Darien freezes beside her.

"Um, if I may ask, how many guys have been in this bed?" Darien asks warily. He hadn't thought Serena to be a girl who brought many guys to her bed but he just had to ask now.

"I'm sorry, I just didn't think for a second there. When I said guys I was referring to my brother and my ex. Both of them slept in nothing but boxers when they went to bed. But you want to know how many guys have been in this bed and the answer is none, you're the first guy." Serena replies quickly while turning to face Darien.

Darien notices that she mentioned a brother just then, in past tense. "I'm sorry about your brother." He apologizes for the obvious loss, or at least it seemed obvious to him.

"Huh? What are you sorry about?" Serena feels really confused by the statement. _What does he have to be sorry for? Does he know something I don't know?_

"Oh, well you just referred to your brother in past tense… You said he and your ex _slept_ in nothing but boxers. I know your ex is past because he's obviously out of your life but what happened to your brother? I've never heard you mention him before." Darien says.

"Oh, no he's not dead!" Serena quickly corrects him. She hadn't meant to make it sound like he was. "My brother is in the military, has been for years now. He enlisted when I was 18 and he was twenty-two. He and Andrew used to be friends when were younger, but since Andrew was right between the two of us in age, he became like another brother to us." Serena's face lights up a little at the fond memories of her childhood.

"Oh? Well, your brother must be a brave man to serve his country for this long." Darien replies. "So, I know why you didn't put him as your emergency contact at work then. But you put Amy as your contact; where are your parents?"

The light dims from Serena's eyes and Darien knows the answer before she even says anything. "My parents died in a car crash when I was almost 17, so I went to live with my brother before he enlisted. I think the military helped him to deal with them being gone, so as long as he's happy, I'm happy." Serena smiles at Darien to show that the subject wasn't too hard for her anymore. "What about your parents? I haven't heard you say much of anything about them."

"My parents actually died a few years ago, so there's not much point in talking about them anymore. My parents had me in their late thirties and not too long after my father's smoking caught up with him and he was diagnosed with lung cancer. So, he died from cancer around the time I was twenty and my mom died a year later, which was last year, from heart failure. We all believe it was a broken heart that killed my mom in the end because her one love was gone." Darien explains his family history to Serena with a cool manner. He's always been good at shielding his emotions and it was especially helpful when talking about his parents because he was as close as he could be to them.

Serena feels her eyes flutter a little, telling her that she's tired and needs to return to sleep. "I'm sorry about your family…" Serena yawns. "I'm also sorry but I feel like I need to sleep a little more. I'm just exhausted from… well, everything. Not to mention I haven't really been sleeping well since I found out I was- you know." Serena starts to turn around when Darien grabs her wrist lightly to get her attention. "Ouch!" she pulls her wrist from his hand and cradles it in her other hand.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you." Darien's face says it all. "I was just going to tell you to come over here if you want to. I thought you might be able to sleep better if you can feel someone close by that'll protect you."

"Oh, thanks." Serena scoots closer to him and his arm comes up around her waist. The fact that he had said that he'd protect her made her think about his lip and eye again. _How did he get hurt again? I remember seeing him for a second when he pinned Seiya but I don't remember him getting hurt then. Oh, he must've gotten hurt after I blacked out!_ Serena feels a little better that she wasn't just forgetting important things. "That's how you got these isn't it? Protecting me?" She reaches up to touch his puffy lip and black eye.

"You wouldn't remember me getting these because they were after you fell. I tried to see what happened to you and your ex got the better of me. He's quite a bit stronger than he looks." Darien says.

"Yea he is stronger than he looks. A _lot_ stronger than he looks, actually." Darien goes to say something after Serena but she stops any words from coming out as she brings her mouth closer to his. Her lips touch his and it feels like a shock going through her body as her heart races.

Darien collects his thoughts and opens his mouth to ask Serena about her relationship with Seiya when his thoughts are cut short. Suddenly her lips are on his and it feels amazing. It feels like electricity is coursing through his veins and his heart seems to stop in his chest for a moment. Just as suddenly as it was there, the feeling is gone as she pulls away. His body seems to physically groan at the loss of sensations. He's staring into crystal blue eyes merely inches from his face with a look of awe in them. Unable to contain himself anymore, Darien reaches across the void and pulls her lips to his. His lip hurts for a second but his body quickly overrides the pain and gives in to the kiss. Upon feeling her lips on his, the electricity is back and his heart feel like it wants to stop beating. _If my heart stops right now, I'll die the happiest man alive! I don't want to give up this feeling for anything._

Feeling Serena's body react to his own, Darien tries to reel in his hormones but completely fails. One of his hands tangles itself in her hair as the other one seems to glide along the side of her body. _I want to know everything about her and her body. All those beautiful curves I've seen; I just want to feel all of them under my hands. God, I wish I could have her underneath me right now._ A low moan escapes his mouth as Serena sucks on his bottom lip.

Serena wasn't sure what Darien was going to say before but she really just didn't care right now. Everything about this kiss is taking her breath away. She feels sensations that she didn't know were possible until now. Hearing a low moan come from Darien's lips, Serena's body reacts in every way possible. Her back arches into him and tries to get as close as possible.

Feeling her push closer to him, Darien loses any control he had before and his hand pushes their bodies as close together as they can get. Then his hand slides down her back, over her butt and moves her leg up and over his own, bringing her even closer to him. As his hand grabs her leg, he feels her tense a little though and attempts to pull himself back from his hormones.

Serena is enjoying every part of their kiss. Darien's touch is light and caring, making her body the happiest it's been in a long time. His hand moves from her back down to her butt and to her thighs with sweet sensations following closely behind it. Then he holds onto her thigh and tries to bring her leg up. His touch was light but when he tries to move her leg she can't help but freeze a little because the pain of someone pressing on her wounds. She tries to continue kissing him after but her body seems to be locked down.

Pulling his focus back as best as he can, Darien tries to stop himself from kissing and touching the beautiful woman in front of him and slowly succeeds after a minute. Seeing the expression on Serena's face he can tell that his grabbing her had actually hurt. As his mind seems to come back to him, he remembers why his touch would've hurt on her thigh. Then he remembers what he was going to say before she had kissed him.

"How do _you_ know how strong your ex is?" Darien asks before his mind has the time to get distracted again. Serena just looks at him with a slightly shocked look on her face, completely speechless. "I know how strong he is because I was on the receiving end of things when I came to help you at work last night. But how would you know just how strong he is?"

Serena tries to think of a valid lie to tell Darien. "I've seen him workout before and I mean, I was with him for almost three years. So, I just kind of know these things." Serena tries her hardest to make it sound true. "Plus, I mean he grabbed my arms last night and I tried to fight back, so I got to feel how strong he was then."

"That wasn't the first time he grabbed you was it?" Darien tries to catch her eyes with his own. Tilting her head downward, Serena tries to avoid his eyes as she tells him it was the first time, but Darien brings her face back to his own and her eyes tell differently._ How did I miss that before? Her eyes are so full of pain and none of us seemed to notice or care._

Reading Darien's face, Serena knows that he could tell she was lying. She chose not to tell anyone about her past because she didn't want the looks of sadness cast in her direction. She didn't want people to see her as anything other than the young woman she had become. Feeling like there was no other way to maintain the little trust that her and this man beside her had started to build, Serena decides to tell him the truth about her relationship with Seiya. How she had moved in with him shortly after her brother left for the army; how she didn't know what to do the first time he'd hit her. Then she told him that she'd come to live with Amy when she finally had enough, leaving out the details of her last few nights with Seiya.

Darien's face was alternating between sadness and anger while he heard all about Serena's past. _She was younger and didn't know how relationships are supposed to be. Having no family and not many friends to turn to, he took advantage of that. Took advantage of her. That's so sick, how can he live with himself?_ Darien thinks to himself. _Wait, so how does being pregnant fit into this?_ Unable to tell if he actually wanted to know, he decides to ask anyways. "How does the-"

"Baby fit into all of this?" Serena finishes his question, and he nods his head. "We did have a loving relationship for a while you know. Seiya wasn't all bad, all the time." She can tell that he isn't buying it but seems to understand where she is coming from. "We were together for quite a few years, and he provided me with everything when my brother left; food, shelter, love, he gave me it all. I wanted to start a family but he didn't seem too interested in doing that. He started to come home from work angry and he'd sort out his anger on me. He started with yelling, then shoving and worked his way up to hitting. When I eventually told him that I didn't want to go to bed with him, he showed me that it wasn't up to me. He was already rough on me when it came to sex but that last night is when I made a run for Amy's place. I found out that as a result of that night, I was pregnant. That wasn't until _after_ I had already gotten the job working for you." Serena finishes and takes a shaky breath. "I didn't tell anyone except Amy about all of that because I didn't want people to look at me like that."

"Like what?" Darien asks.

"The way you're looking at me right now. Like I'm a helpless little bunny with nowhere to go. Like I'm broken and need fixing." She replies, with slight grit in her voice.

"Sorry, I just- I didn't know this about you. I mean, it's surprising to say the least because you're such a determined person at work and so much fun to be around outside of work. I could just never imagine how someone could hurt a person like you. You are truly beautiful and I can't keep my mind off of you for even a second." Darien chuckles a little. "As clichéd as it is, it's true."

"Thank you, that's probably one of the sweetest things I've ever heard." Serena smiles. "I wasn't sure how you would feel about me after all of this went down. I feel horrible for complicating your life so much."

"It's fine. You know what? My life could use a little complicating and you're very welcome to bring said complications." Darien can't help but smile as her face lights back up. Gently pulling Serena back into his arms, Darien places a soft kiss on her lips then says, "You should get some more sleep because, as you said, you're exhausted."

Serena welcomes the comfort of Darien's arms. Her lips still tingling from the light kiss he had given her, Serena drifts off into a peaceful sleep. For the first time in what seemed like forever, she feels safe in someone's arms as she falls asleep with a smile on her face.

Darien brings his head back a little to see Serena's face buried in his chest. Looking at her face, he can tell that she is asleep and seeing a small smile on her face just warms his heart. Returning his head back to the pillow, Darien falls asleep happy to have the woman that he's grown to love, sleeping in his arms.


	15. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

By: Serena Chibi

Date: February 9, 2012,

**I'm back. Had a rough few semesters at school, and I have surgery on my knee next week, so that'll leave me 4 days to catch up on this. But in the meantime, here's a short little chapter I had partly done until now

Amy and Kunzite arrive back at her apartment around 7:00 at night and are surprised to see that Darien's car is still in the parking lot. Kunzite chuckles to himself.

"What's so funny?" Amy asks as she looks at him curiously.

"Oh no, I just thought it was kind of funny that he is still here, is all." Kunzite nods his head in the direction of Darien's car. "I knew he had a thing for her but I didn't realize how bad. I called my brothers to see if he came in to work today and none of them had heard from or seen him. This is pretty much the first day he hasn't been at work in at least a year, maybe even two."

"Well, on that note, maybe we should go check to make sure they are both alive in there. I haven't heard from Serena all day, which is a little strange for her as well."

Amy walks towards the apartment building and Kunzite runs to catch up to her.

"Hmm, I wonder where they are." Amy asks out loud, as she lets herself and Kunzite into the apartment.

"Hello?" No answer. Feeling a little worried now, Amy walks down the hallway and pushes open the doors to the rooms as she goes. Turning back to Serena's room, she slowly pushes the door open the remainder of the way. Seeing Serena curled up into Darien's arms, fast asleep, Amy lets out a sigh of relief.

"Well, they seem cozy enough." kunzite appears behind Amy, and rests his head on her shoulder.

"Now I can relax a little," Amy turns her head to Kunzite's and laughs lightly. "Well, I think I'm going to head to bed. I have a new book I want to read, too. I mean, unless you wanted to hang out a little longer?" Amy starts walking down the hallway, to the living room and Kunzite follows her.

"Nah, I think I'm going to head home myself; still have a little paperwork to finish up. Oh, good job at the meeting today." Kunzite says as Amy opens the door for him. "And goodnight, Amy" He leans in and leaves a light kiss on Amy's cheek, then proceeds down the hallway to the stairs.

"Goodnight…" Amy whispers as she slowly closes the door. Locking the handle and the bolt on the door, she makes a glass of water and heads to bed.


	16. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

By: Serena Chibi

Date: February 16, 2012,

*My surgery went well, they were able to repair my knee, so I have 6 weeks of recovery while it heals now

Stirring awake to the sound of her phone ringing, Serena looks towards the annoying device and stretches her arm to silence it. Feeling the faint weight of an arm around her waist, Serena slowly looks behind her and sees short black hair. A deep, red blush spreading across her face, Serena turns back towards the window. At that moment, Darien pulls her a little closer to him and laughs lightly.

He'd been watching her sleep for a few minutes now, mesmerized by the way the sunlight played across her golden hair. When her phone rang he watched her turn it off and squinted his eyes when she turned towards him. He didn't want her to know he was awake yet, he wanted to just watch her sleep a little longer. It was like watching a child sleep, but she turned to him and a blush spread across her face as she quickly turned around. It was too cute, he couldn't resist pulling her a little closer. He laughed a little, "Am I really that embarrassing to wake up to?"

"No… I was just caught a little off guard is all", she pulls the sheet up around her shoulders. "I'm not used to waking up with someone else in my bed" she says as the blush spreads further across her cheeks.

"Mm, well I'm happy with waking up in your bed", Darien kisses her cheek and smiles. "But honestly, I have to shower and get to work. I didn't check into work or anything yesterday."

"Aren't you able to take a day off? I mean, you do pay all the guys and everyone to run the place when you aren't there, don't you?" Serena props her head up on her hand and turns to face Darien, eyeing him curiously.

"Oh, well I do…. Kind of, but I still like to be there pretty much every day because I know what exactly is happening at all times then. It just makes me feel more in control of everything, I don't really have to worry about work then." He replies.

"Oh, so have you been worrying the whole time you've been here? 'Cause I mean you can leave to go check on things if you want to. I don't need a baby-sitter; I can do alright on my own." Serena sits up and goes to get out of bed.

"I honestly haven't been worrying about work since I've been around you. But if you want me to leave then I'll leave, I just figured you'd appreciate the company at a time like this." Darien tells her. Having come to a stop sitting on the edge of the bed, Serena turns to face him.

"I didn't mean it like that, I'm sorry. It's just that you don't really know me but I'm already causing you to miss work and everything. You run a successful business and you don't need to put that in jeopardy because of me." She looks out the window and thinks to herself.

"What are you talking about? If I didn't want to be here then I wouldn't be. As for work, I can stand to take a day or two off and it won't affect how the place runs." Darien sits up in the bed; he watches as Serena rests her face in her hands.

"As for not knowing anything about you; I know all I need to know. I know that you're beautiful, sweet, kind-hearted, a little shy, and modest and did I mention beautiful?" He brushes the hair out of her face as she looks at him. Putting a hand under her chin, Darien pulls her face up to meet his. "And I love you and _that_ is all I need to know about you."

A smile slowly spreads across Serena's face. "You…You… love me?" Her eyes shimmer and tears slowly roll down her cheeks. _He loves me? He really loves me? Even after everything he somehow loves me._

"Why are you crying? What's so wrong with me loving you?" Darien cups her face and looks into her eyes for an answer.

"Nothing, absolutely nothing is wrong with you loving me. I just can't believe you actually do… Love me. Especially after everything, I'm just a mess. You can have the pick of any woman but somehow you love me. I'm just so far beyond not deserving of your love; I mean look at the hell that I've put you through already." Serena sobs out.

"You are deserving of love, especially my love. All of the craziness that has happened wasn't your fault it was his. He's the one that hurt me, not you. He has you so convinced that you're the bad person in all of this but you're not. You're convinced that you don't deserve love but you do, and I'm giving my love to you." A single tear rolls down Darien's cheek and he leans in to give Serena a sweet, slow kiss, but just before their lips touch Serena whispers, "I love you too, I have since the start of this. I came here for a new beginning and I found you."


	17. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

By: Serena Chibi

Date: March 16, 2012

*** I didn't really look over this one too well, so please excuse any mistakes grammar/spelling wise. I'll fix them later, I just really wanted to get another chapter up.

"Well, you should probably head to work now." Serena lifts her head from Darien's chest to look in his eyes. "It looks like I've kept you for an extra half hour, I'm sorry."

Darien kisses her forehead, "Don't be, it's definitely worth being a little late for work because of this. Besides, I am the boss, so I'm not late unless I say I am", he winks at her and gets up out of bed. "Um, I have a lunch meeting with the guys today and a client, so I probably won't be back until at least 3 o'clock. Is there anything you want while I'm out?"

"Nope, I think I'll find something to eat here. Oh! I have a few posters/papers done, too. Could you just take them in with you, maybe? I have a doctor's appointment today, which I can't miss." Serena grabs her phone as she gets out of bed and walks to the closet. Grabbing her clothes for the day, she walks towards the bathroom but stops at the door. "I almost forgot, do you need to shower or anything? Cause you can go ahead if you want to, I mean you probably want to be clean and put together for the meeting."

"Oh no, it's fine. I was going to stop at my house first anyways because I need fresh clothes and such too. You know you could catch a ride with me to work, that way you can get your car instead of having Amy drive you around." Darien smiles as he puts on his socks.

"Well, I still have like 2 hours before my appointment, and my car is sitting in the work parking lot too. I was going to have Amy drive me but guess I could catch a ride with you to work instead, so I can get my car and just drive myself to my appointment." Serena asks politely, "Besides, it'd be nice to see your place. I mean you've already seen mine plenty." She smiles.

"Okay, just get a shower really fast and I'll wait for you". Darien can't help but smile back, something about this woman was contagious. _No, everything about her is contagious; she smiles and I smile, she cries and I want to cry, she's hurt and I hurt for her. She's so genuine, I can't help it. _He thinks to himself.

Twenty minutes later and they are pulling into the driveway of Darien's house. Serena stares ahead as they make their way up a driveway to a rather large, two-story home. "_This _is your house?" Serena asks.

Darien looks at her a little unsure; worried what she may think of him for having such a large house for only one person. "Yes?"

"It's gorgeous!" she exclaims as they pull in front of the house.

The driveway forms a circle in front of the house, making it seem even more extravagant. Darien throws the car in park and walks around to open Serena's door for her. Taking her hand in his, Darien leads her up the front stairs and through the double door entrance.

"It used to be my parents' house; my dad built it shortly after he started to make a profit with the company. I wasn't sure if I wanted to keep it once my father passed, but as you can see I obviously decided to. I had someone come in and update the entire interior and everything though, so it doesn't resemble much of the house it was before."

Serena stands in the foyer and looks around, taking in her surroundings. The foyer is circular in shape with a staircase winding halfway around the room to the second floor. It's a very bright room, soft beige walls with tan and brown tile floors. The entire front of the room is nothing but windows, making the room feel very open and inviting. To the left is the entrance to what looks to be a dining room and to her right is the kitchen.

"May I?" Serena asks as she gestures towards the kitchen.

"Go right ahead, I actually just put this together, the appliances and everything needed replaced. So, it has all new floor tiles and fresh paint. It's probably the cleanest room in the house. To be honest I don't think I've ever even used any of the appliances, I just eat at work or at meetings." Darien rubs the back of his neck and laughs nervously. _She's going to think I'm crazy, like I don't have a life outside of work._

The floor tiles are a black and white marble checkerboard across the room. Everything about the room appears to brand new and untouched by anyone, from the polished grey marble countertops to the stainless steel appliances. There is a window above the sink making the room feel homier. At the end of the countertops and appliances is an open area for a small glass table in front of several windows and a sliding glass door. Walking towards the door, Serena runs her hands along the countertop, loving the feel of the smooth surface beneath her fingers. Once at the table she examines the chairs around it and notices they are black steel with white suede seats.

_It's been a while since I've been anywhere like this; it almost feels like home…_ Serena thinks to herself as she looks out the back door.

"There's not much out there right now, just grass and forest… One thing my father always wanted was land, so he bought nearly 150 acres here. I still don't know why he wanted so much, or what he wanted to do with all of it though. I wish I knew cause I sure don't know what to do with all of it. I mean, there's like 5 acres cleared right up against the house but the rest is pretty much untamed." Darien says while lost in thought. "Well, I have to go shower but let me show you the upstairs really quick."

They walk up the stairs which opens into a large hallway lined with doors and a single doorway. To the left are two bedrooms and a bathroom; to the right are a bedroom and the open doorway. Peeking in the room as they pass, Serena sees a large desk, several bookshelves and a panoramic window (which overlooks the driveway) behind the desk. _That must be his office then._

"This is the master bedroom, also known as my room." Darien opens the door and they are immediately greeted by warm sunlight from every direction. "In case you can't tell, I really appreciate the sunlight and the warmth it provides." He smiles and looks to Serena. "Feel free to look around; I'll be right in here taking a quick shower." He indicates towards the attached master bath as he walks in and closes the door.

_There's just so much space in here! I mean, the room has practically no edges because of the shape and it's nothing but windows in here. How do you get any privacy? _She spins a circle in the middle of the D-shaped room until she sees a golden colored tassel hanging close to the door they came in. The tassel is attached to a slider which goes around the entire room but seems to disappear into the wall at the end. Pulling the string away from the wall, she notices fabric coming out a small opening in the wall._ Unbelievable, he has hidden curtains for his bedroom? That's actually kind of amazing, and different. How in the world do you get them back in that little opening though?_ She looks at the opening in the wall trying to figure out how the fabric would all fit neatly back inside of it, then she notices a button hidden along the wall and presses it. Almost immediately, the little bit of curtain she pulled out vanishes back into the wall.

Turning back to the one straight wall in the room, she looks at the bed. Walking over to it, she touches the linen and admires the softness of it. _A California King bed, are you kidding me? Either someone can't stay still while they sleep, or they have a lot of "extracurricular" activities. I wonder which one it is…_ Serena turns back to the door to the master bath and it caught by surprise that Darien is standing in the doorway. Taking a step back in her surprise, Serena's legs hit the edge of the bed and she falls backwards onto it.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you there." Darien finds himself standing in the doorway chuckling quietly. "Are you alright?"

Serena tries to prevent it but she can already feel her face burning as it turns red with embarrassment. "I'm okay; just jumpy and I guess clumsy, now." She quickly returns to her feet. "Okay, um… Let's get going to work."


	18. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

By: Serena Chibi

Date: March 19, 2012,

As they are about to pull into work, Serena can't help but ask a question that was trying to force its way out of her mouth the entire car ride there.

"Don't you ever get lonely? I mean, it is just you in that house isn't it? I'd imagine it gets lonesome at times…" She turns to look at him in the driver's seat.

"I guess it can be. It's been just me living there since my parents died, it's not like I have anyone else to share the space with…" Darien pauses as he throws the car in park next to Serena's car in the lot. Still looking ahead he says, "Well, I didn't have anyone to share the space with, that is until now..." Then returning his focus to Serena, Darien gives her a heart melting smile. "I know it's really soon and all but you do have an open invitation to move in, if you'd like that is. I know you are working in order to pay rent and try for a fresh start, but it seems that your ex knows where to find you now. At least at my place you wouldn't have to worry about him; I have top-notch security and cameras all around."

"That's really sweet and everything, and I thank you for the offer immensely, but.. I can take care of myself you know. I don't need you to take care of me, no offence. If I were to move in with you, it would be because I want to be with you, not because I need your protection." Serena states almost matter-of-factly, and then turns to face the window

_Just look away, just look away. I can't bear to see that hurt look that I know is still on his face, I may just crumble if I do. The last time I fell for that, I learned my lesson. I don't need anyone to protect me, I can protect myself. I can take care of myself, I have so far._ Then she thinks a little more on it. _Well, okay so I haven't been doing the greatest job on my own… I've been stalked and in the hospital in the past month… Okay, so maybe I do need a little protecting, probably from myself at this point._

"Just let me think about it. Please? I just really need to think before I do, nowadays." Serena turns back to Darien, just in time to see the hurt look vanish. "Just a little time, okay? I need to try to figure out what I'm doing here. Not just you know, here-here, but what I'm doing with my life in general. Do you understand…? I'd still like to continue seeing you though; I'm not trying to break up with you or anything. I just need to think about the moving in thing a little bit."

"Okay, okay. You go ahead and think about the whole moving in thing. In the meantime, I'll just keep on doing this." Darien reaches across the car and cups Serena's cheek in his hand. He leans across and captures her lips in a sultry kiss then leans back into his seat. "Well, I'm off to work. You have a good appointment & I'll see you later, if you want."

"Okay, thanks. I really appreciate everything you've done for me. I think I may want to hang out at the house with Amy tonight, have a girls' night if that's okay." Serena looks to Darien and he's smiling, she returns a smile. "I'll call you though, okay?"


	19. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

By: Serena Chibi

Date: March 26, 2012,

"So, how did your appointment go? How are you doing?" Amy asks Serena as she plops on the couch next to her.

"It went fine, he said that I can go ahead with my normal life now… I can have sex again if I want to." Serena replies.

"That's great, Serena! That means you're all healed." Amy smiles and looks at Serena's face. She doesn't look completely overjoyed, she looks worried. "What's wrong? That's good news, Serena."

"I know I should be completely overjoyed, kind of like you are, but I'm not. I've never been with anyone else before, what if I don't know how to be? I mean, what if everything I thought about sex was wrong? I don't exactly have the greatest history with the subject." Serena looks at her hands.

"Oh, sweetie. You'll be fine, you'll know when it happens what to do and how to feel. Don't stress about it one bit. Besides, you told Darien about your history didn't you? I'm sure he'll understand and be able to help you through it." Amy puts her hands on Serena's shoulders and pulls her closer.

"I kind of told him… I didn't tell him everything but I think he can gather what happened, maybe?"

"Just worry about it when you get to it, there's no rush into things and you two definitely don't need to rush into things." Amy smiles.

"Speaking of rushing into things, Darien asked me to move in with him. I don't know what to do, do I move in with him? Or should I wait on that too?" Serena asks seriously.

"Um, I mean you don't have very much stuff here, so it would be easy for you to do. That one is really up to you, Serena. I can't tell you what to do in this instance; you need to decide for yourself."

"Oh, okay. Well I'll be back in a little bit" Serena stands up, "I think I'm going to go for a walk in the park or something. Just clear my head for a little bit, maybe I'll come to a decision on things that way."

"Okay, just take your cell phone and be careful, it's getting dark out soon." Amy hands Serena's phone to her.

"I'm always careful, you know that. But I'll call you if there's any problem or anything. Knock on wood." Serena taps her knuckles on the doorframe before leaving.

Serena walks down the street and breaks into a run. She finds herself running for about fifteen minutes, until she reaches the small park. She does a little jog until she reaches a bench on the other side of the pond. She walks a few circles, letting her breath return to its normal speed. _Man, I am really out of shape. I need to start running in the mornings or something, cause this is ridiculous!_ Serena finds herself laughing as she sits down on the bench and looks at the sun setting on the pond.

"Should I move in with him or shouldn't I? Should I have sex or shouldn't I? What am I so afraid of?" She barely whispers to herself. "Maybe he won't hurt me, I mean he hasn't so far has he?" She tilts her head in thought. "No, in fact he's tried to keep me from getting hurt."

"Hello, Bunny." A whisper reaches Serena's ear as someone sits on the bench beside her.

Serena feels her body start to shake involuntarily, as she looks to her right. "What do you want?"

"Oh, just to see you again. Our last meeting got cut short, if I recall correctly, by your little lover boy." Seiya turns to catch Serena's eyes. "Ah, I see you have changed a little bit. Seems like this new guy has quite the effect on you; if I didn't know any better I would say you were glowing…" Seiya reaches his hand up and touches Serena's cheek. "Or would that glow happen to be from our little one growing inside you?" He leans in a little closer, "How does your new lover feel about that, by the wa-?"

Serena manages a little courage and slaps Seiya across the face hard, before he can finish his statement. "Don't you dare; don't you dare talk to me like that! I don't know where you get off talking to me like that, but I will not tolerate it anymore."

Seiya just watches her curiously, like a cat watching a bird fly overhead. "You are just like I remember you, way back when I first found you. Do you remember my taking you in and giving you everything you wanted? You owe me; you owe me a goodbye and visitation rights to that child." He points towards her stomach.

Serena stands up and looks him in the eye, "I have said it before and this is the last time I will say it, goodbye Seiya." She starts to walk away, "Oh yea, and about wanting visitation rights. There's no point, the baby is gone; dead."

"What did you do?" He stands up, anger flashing dangerously across his face. He grabs her arm roughly as she tries to walk away. "What did you do? Did you abort it? Did you decide to terminate it or was it your lover's idea? I'll kill him! I'll kill him and make you watch, and then I'll kill you. You've given me far too much grief; it's not worth it anymore. Not after this!" He stops once he receives another swift smack across the face.

"It's not my fault and it's not his fault, it's yours! I had a miscarriage Seiya, and it was cause by extreme stress amongst other things. The stress from you and your need to control me! You've hurt me and taken your anger out on me, and that was partly my fault because I let you take me away from my friends and family, and hurt me. But this… Losing this baby, it was all you." Serena stares angrily at him as few tears flow down her cheek.

"But I'm your family, you can't just walk away from that can you? You told me you couldn't, that I was all you had." Seiya asks her with a sullen, almost defeated look.

"You were all I had because you wouldn't let me have anyone else. You forced me away from all of my friends, and my only family left is my brother. He pretty much lives wherever the war is though, I only see him like once a year. That is if I'm lucky. You are neither my family nor a friend; neither one of them would hurt me the way you ever did or are. I think disappearing overnight and not calling is kind of a sign that I don't want to hear from or see you. Besides you have that new little blonde that you've obviously been toying around with. The one you brought to the gala? Yea, you don't need me. And I don't want you."

Serena left Seiya just standing there and made her way back home, as quickly as she could. Taking a shower, she lies down in bed with her towel wrapped around her. Pulling it tighter to her body, she lies there and thinks about the events from nearly an hour ago. She thought about it and her body almost wanted to shake at the very thought of Seiya but then her mind overrode with the newfound strength she found herself in possession of. _Where did that come from?_ She tries to think of where she was able to draw her strength from. What had been so different this time from the last?

_What was different? What has changed? I've never spoken to him like that. I never had the ability to. Could it be?_ She closes her eyes in thought. _No, it can't be… Can it?_ "I love him. That's what happened; what changed."

"What?" A voice rings from the doorway to her room. She hadn't even noticed the door open.

_I really should pay more attention to my surroundings. _Serena sits up in bed and looks to greet her visitor.

"What did you say?" Mina asks as she walks over to sit on the edge of the bed. "You love him? Love who? What happened?" She gently grabs Serena's arm and looks at the discoloration.

"Oh nothing, I just had a little run in while I was on my run a little bit ago." Serena smiles at Mina, reassuring her that it isn't a big deal.

"Oh, okay. Who do you love?" Mina practically bounces on the bed and smiles broadly at her friend.

"Um… Darien? The one that I went to the gala with?"

"Ooh, the one that you described as gorgeous? Isn't he your boss or something? Yea he is! That's Mr. Shields!" Mina bounces up and down then hugs Serena.


	20. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

By: Serena Chibi

Date: April 4, 2012,

The following morning, Serena makes her way up to Darien's office. The door is slightly ajar, so she slowly pushes it open. "Darien?"

He raises his index finger, indicating for her to give him a moment. He has a phone to his ear and has a small crease in his forehead, meaning it was something important or bothersome. A minute later he hangs up the phone and instantly his forehead is smooth again.

"Hey, Serena; what can I do for you?" He smiles at her.

"Can I talk to you for a minute?" She walks in and takes a seat in the chair across from Darien.

"Sure, what's up?" Darien puts his pen down on his papers and looks at her.

"I wanted to apologize, for yesterday. I shouldn't have been that rude to you, I didn't mean to be. So, I just really wanted to apologize for my behavior yesterday morning when you made me an offer to move in with you. I should have been more appreciative, I'm sorry." Serena looks to her hands then looks back up to Darien, only to find him smiling a little.

"That's funny because I wanted to apologize to you. It took me some time to think about why you reacted the way you did, but a close friend explained it to me. Kunzite actually… But I didn't mean to rush you or anything; I don't want to rush you at all. I just want you to be safe, but maybe I went about it the wrong way? I don't want to scare you away, but I do want you to know that I'm not anything like Seiya. I'm not going to hurt you, I couldn't imagine ever doing that. In fact, I want to do just the opposite, I want to love you and protect you. I don't want to scare you away though. It just seems to be very touch and go with you, it's very complicated but understandably so _because_ of your past. But that's okay, you just need to let me know when to slow down or stop, okay? I'll listen to you, you call the shots here, not me. Understand?"

"Yes, I understand… Thank you. Thank you so much. I mean, I love you but I just don't know how to love you yet. And not just you, I just don't know how to love anyone anymore. I am just realizing the love I was in, wasn't love at all… At least not anything that would be considered healthy. So, you just need to give me a little more time than anyone else would. I need more time to think things through because I need to make sure I am making the right decisions now."

"Okay, I completely understand that. Take all the time you need to think things through, once you know just let me know." Darien catches Serena's eyes with his own.

"That's what I was coming here for… I wanted to tell you that I would love to move in with you. I thought about it, and I mean with you spending all this time keeping an eye on me, we practically live together already. If I move in with you, it'll save you from driving out of your way to check on me every night. So, if the offer still stands, then I'll move in with you." Serena replies.

Darien's face lights up, "Yes, you can still move in with me! The offer was never rescinded."

Serena cracks a smile which reaches her eyes and walks around the desk to give Darien a hug.


	21. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

By: Serena Chibi

Date: April 9, 2012,

Sorry for the short chapters, I'm writing this in class now (while I am listening to my teacher talk). So, they may be a little shorter for a while but I am trying to get more done and out there. I have a goal and thought now; I'm just trying to get it onto paper. Plus, I nearly tore my stitches out of my knee, so I've been kind of focused on other things, sorry.

It had been almost a month since Serena decided to move in with Darien. She walks around the house early morning, still awestruck by the house and its appearance. Overall, it was starting to feel warmer, more welcome; Darien had taken her out to the store to pick up things for the house. He wanted her to feel welcome, so they spent quite a bit on little things to make it feel more like home. He never had time to before, but since Serena had come into his life, Darien found he had more time to do things he enjoyed. He had come to realize that he could take a day or two off of work and the place wouldn't fall to pieces.

"So, have you decided what to do with the backyard yet?" Serena walks into the kitchen and towards the table, where Darien is sitting reading papers and drinking coffee.

He lays his paper back on the table and holding his coffee loosely in his left hand looks to Serena. "I think I have an idea what to do with it but it's a surprise, you can't know." He smiles lazily then sips his coffee.

"A surprise, really?" Serena seems excited and moves to sit in the seat across from Darien. "What kind of surprise? Will I like it?" Darien laughs and Serena looks at him funny.

"Of course you'll like it; it's a surprise for you, Silly." He watches Serena's expression change and she blushes a little. "You know, you're going to have to get used to getting gifts or surprises from me eventually; because I don't plan on stopping anytime soon." Darien chuckles as she tilts her head down and the blush spreads even further.

"I don't need so many gifts, I feel bad because I don't have anything to give you in return."

"It's not about what you can give me; I just want to make you happy. Being happy is enough of a gift for me, Serena. I love you and when you're happy, I'm happy. So, don't worry about it. I like giving you gifts." He walks across the room, setting his coffee cup in the sink.

"Darien..." Serena looks at him funny and watches as he looks at the sink then back to her.

"Sorry, still new to me. As I said, it's been forever since I've actually dirtied dishes which I need to clean. I'll learn eventually." He laughs and picks up the coffee cup, then places it in the dishwasher next to him. "See? I give you gifts and you can housetrain me in return."

Serena bursts into laughter, "You make it sound like you're a dog in need of training. I never thought of it as housetraining, it's just how my parents taught me to live. Well, I should get ready for work. Don't want to be late; my boss is pretty strict on that." Serena winks and gives him a kiss on the cheek and happily walks off.

"Actually, your boss wants you to go stay with Amy & Kunzite for a few days… Well, like five?" Darien asks.

"Um, okay? Yea, I'll see if I can… Why? Are you getting sick of me already?" Serena turns in the doorway to face him.

"No, of course not…" Darien seems almost taken aback. "I just need a few days to get your surprise in order, that's all. I already have everything in order, so I only need a few days. But no peeking, you can't stop over or anything, okay? I'll see you at work & we can go out to dinner or something."

"Okay, just as long as you aren't getting rid of me." Serena jokes. "So… What is the surprise? Can I get a hint or something?"

"Nope, no spoiling the surprise. You can wait a few days for a surprise like this. It's a big surprise; I can't wait to see your face when you first see it." He smiles broadly. "Now, you really should get to work. I think I saw Jadeite drop off a packet of something or other on your desk last night as I was leaving."

"Oh fine, you're off the hook this time." Serena points her finger mocking like he's in trouble. "Are you coming?"

"Nope, I'm staying here. As I said, I have plenty of work to do around here. I love you though and I'll see you later tonight at Amy's."


	22. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

By: Serena Chibi

Date: April 11, 2012,

Thank you all for the kind words, I'm glad that you are all enjoying the story As I said before, I am trying to get out more updates. Reviews always seem to help me get more motivated to get them out and give me more ideas to mix in.

"I think I'm ready."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure; I'm ready." Serena looks at Amy.

"Okay, let's do this. Let's go shopping so you have some new things for tonight." Amy tells Serena.

"But I already have things. I mean, I have the stuff I wear on a daily basis. Plus, I have some of the things that I brought with me when I left Seiya. What's wrong with the stuff I already have?" Serena asks, unaware of what she's asking Amy.

"What's wrong with the stuff you already have? Did you seriously just ask me that?" Amy cocks her head at her best friend. "Um, how about someone else has already seen you in it? How about the fact that Seiya has already made love to you in them? I'm just saying, fresh start and fresh lingerie. You should probably just throw away the stuff you brought with you. We don't want to keep any of that, we'll buy you all new clothes today."

"Um, okay. But I don't have that much money to spend on underthings, it's not like I have a separate account for this stuff, Amy." Serena practically whines at Amy.

Pulling a credit card out of her pocket, Amy waves it in front of Serena. "It's on me, no worries. Darien gave me a raise when you moved out, kind of his way of helping me pay rent since I wasn't getting money from you anymore. But then Kunzite started helping out, so I don't really have to worry about that anymore. Besides, it's your first time in how long? You deserve a little something special for tonight."

Serena turns her cheek, "It's weird… You knowing exactly what I plan to do tonight. It's like my mom knowing that I'm going to have sex for the first time. It's just weird." Serena laughs. "Can we bring Mina and maybe Raye or something? That way it's less awkward?"

"Um, you work with them and their husbands. Do you really think that's a good idea? It'll be a matter of minutes before Mina lets the entire place know that you and Darien are going to have sex finally." Amy laughs out loud.

"Oh, right. I didn't think of that. Well, it'll be just you and me then. Just no weird comments or anything, I don't want this to feel any more like I'm lingerie shopping with my mother." Serena looks at Amy, waiting for a reply.

"Fine, I'll try to monitor what I say. No guarantees though, I've been known to talk like me mother. You should remember that much from when we were close friends." Amy replies.

"Oh yea, wasn't she a… Wait, don't help me… a doctor! That's what she was." Serena puffs up, looking proud that she remembered the important fact.

"Yes, she is a doctor." Amy laughs, looking at Serena.

The girls spent the next few hours going clothes and lingerie shopping. In the end they spent a couple hundred dollars updating Serena's wardrobe.

"So, what do you think this surprise is, Serena? It seems like a big deal to him, I mean he actually pawned you off to me for like a week." Amy asks, "Not that I mind having you back for a few days, I don't." Amy pushes her shoulder against Serena's lightly to let her know it wasn't an inconvenience.

"I have no idea; I've spent the past few days racking my mind about it. I haven't asked him for anything, I mean I don't need anything more than he's already given me. Maybe a pool or something? But he hasn't mentioned anything and I most certainly haven't." Serena looks on in thought.

"Huh, maybe he got the idea from someone else? I mean, it is a surprise so he wouldn't really ask you what you wanted now would he?" Amy asks.

"I have no idea, I don't really talk to any of his friends. I haven't really spoken to Kunzite, Jadeite or Andrew about anything other than work. Well, I spoke to Andrew briefly when I first came here but I haven't since, and I rushed away from him then."

"Huh, well I guess we'll have to wait and see. What time tomorrow did he want you to come over? It's a Sunday after all, so it's your one day to sleep in. Actually, all of our one day to sleep in." Amy smirks.

"Um, he said something like 9 or 10 in the morning," Serena grimaces then smiles. "He must be a morning person or something, whenever I wake up he's already downstairs drinking his coffee. I swear the man never eats breakfast though, or at least not from what I've seen. He has made me breakfast before… Maybe I should go over early and make him breakfast in return."

"Um, well he might not have everything ready if you go over there early. Maybe you should wait on that; maybe until the morning after?" Amy winks suggestively at her friend.

"Oh, maybe I shouldn't go over there early then… The following morning before work should be just fine." Serena smiles, lost in her own thoughts. "Wait, what did you? Oh." A faint blush spreads across her face, "I didn't mean it like that, like we'd be doing anything tonight. I just want to make him breakfast because it's good for your body and brain."

"You know what else is good for your body and your brain?" Amy chuckles quietly as Serena flashes her a look of disbelief then laughs herself.


	23. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

By: Serena Chibi

Date: April 11, 2012,

I couldn't wait to get this chapter out now, because the amount of reviews I've had coming in Hope that you guys like it, I wrote it during my English class, lol. I was thinking I should let you guys wait, but I figure you've all waited long enough for some consistent updates ;) Well, enjoy & as always, I look forward to your reviews.

Serena woke up early the next morning. She took a quick shower, shaving her legs and everything, and then putting her hair up in a Dutch-braid coming over her right shoulder. Pulling out a pair of khaki colored shorts and a white button-down t-shirt, Serena gets dressed then finds a pair of white tennis shoes. She felt clean and ready for anything. After eating a bowl of cereal, Serena heads out the door to Darien's house.

She knew he was already awake, so she walks up to the front door and knocks on it's surface. Almost immediately, Darien is at the door smiling at her. He picks her up in a hug and gives her a quick kiss.

"So, are you ready for your surprise?"

"Maybe…" Serena messes with him, trying to not sound excited. Once his face changes, she hits his arm lightly. "I'm kidding! Of course I'm ready, you've had me thinking about this thing all week!" She watches as his face turns to its previous excitement and he laughs, grabbing her hand. He practically drags her to the backdoor in the kitchen and tells her to close her eyes.

Serena felt strange walking across the yard. The further she walked the strange she felt, it was the feeling there was something large in front of her but she couldn't open her eyes to see. Then she felt the change between the soft grass to something harder, like a packed dirt surface. Smelling something quite familiar to her, Serena becomes excited. "Can I open my eyes yet? Please?"

"One second…" Darien walks her a few more steps. "Okay, you can open them now!" He then removes his hands from her eyes so she can take in her surroundings.

Serena opens her eyes and is struck by what she sees. Stretched out in front of her is a dirt aisle lined with stalls. _He built a barn! _Serena thinks to herself. Her eyes light up as she scans the area. The barn was built of a gorgeous golden colored wood; she couldn't tell if the color was from the actual wood itself or the soft lighting that flooded the aisle from the mixture of sunlight and overhead lights.

Placing a hand on the smooth surface of a stall door, Serena slides it along next to her as she makes her way down the aisle. The stalls aren't fully enclosed; they are designed so any horses within them could stick their entire head out into the aisle. Looking into the third stall down the aisle, Serena notices the Dutch style door at the back of the large 12 x 12 stall. The top half of the door is open, letting the scent of freshly mowed grass reach her senses.

"It's gorgeous! I absolutely love it!" Serena jumps up into Darien's arms hugging him tightly. She smothers him with quick kisses, unable to express her joy any other way.

"I knew you would, but there is one more-" Darien tells her between kisses, as he is cut off by the sound of a shrill whinny. Serena's eyes go wider, if that were even possible. "- thing." He finishes his statement as she goes running to the other side of the barn.

Serena runs out the other side of the barn and sees two large fenced in pastures. Stopping dead in her tracks, she watches as a gorgeous, bay horse comes running up to the gate. His coat is a beautiful golden brown, comparable only to a new penny, while his mane and tail are the deepest, darkest black. She walks over to touch his muzzle, then moves his forelock off of his forehead; hidden underneath is a perfect, white diamond-shaped marking. His eyes seem to be surrounded by black eyeliner and his muzzle is the same shade as his mane. Taking a step back, Serena takes a look at the rest of the stallion in front of her. His legs were pure black all the way up to his knees, and on his two hind legs are white socks going to just past his fetlock (ankle). Tail flowing like a waterfall of night down to the ground, she couldn't imagine anything more gorgeous than the animal in front of her.

Darien walks up behind Serena, wrapping his arms around her and looking at the creature in front of them. He never cared much for horses, although he was never given the opportunity to be around them. Just seeing the way that his love looked at the one she'd been given made him want to love them as well. "So, do you like your surprise then?" He asks, looking down at Serena, watching her watch the stallion.

"Yes, I love it. Absolutely love it! And I love you."


	24. Chapter 23

Chapter 23

By: Serena Chibi

Date: April 16, 2012

Enjoy & REVIEW Reviews are what keep me going on this story.

Heading back into the house, Serena almost doesn't want to go back inside. Wanting to stay out in the barn with the stallion, she tries to put her focus back into getting lunch with Darien.

"I figured you'd probably want to spend the rest of the day in the barn. So, I went ahead and made a lunch for us to eat outside if you'd like? It's not much, just some sandwiches and fresh fruit." Darien tells Serena, as he approaches the refrigerator

"Oh, thanks. I guess I'm pretty predictable, huh?" Serena smirks.

"Not predictable, I just got some info from a pretty reliable source. Someone told me that you love horses and riding but haven't done either in a long while. So, I figured it would be a great surprise for you. There's some tack I bought with the horse in the barn as well, so you can go ahead and ride today if you want too. I didn't know what kind of riding you did, so I just bought some little jumps and poles and stuff… To be honest, I have no idea what half of this stuff is, the woman at the store sold it to me." Darien laughs at his gullibility.

"Are you serious? You bought all of that?" Serena ask unbelievably.

"Yes… Is that bad? Do you not use any of that? Cause I can just return it or something." Darien seems a little anxious.

"No, no, no. That's not bad, that's incredible! That is so sweet of you; I can't wait to take him over some jumps! Can we- can I go out there now? Please? It's been so long since I was last in the saddle. Can I go saddle him up now? I want to go over some jump really quick." Serena practically jumps up and down like an overjoyed child.

"Let me just grab our food really quick" He reaches into the fridge and pulls out a small basket full of food. "Okay, let's go." He moves towards the door but Serena is already running out to the barn. Making his way to the barn, Darien finds himself basking in Serena's joy, and the warm sunshine.

Serena puts the stallion in crossties in the aisle and quickly finds the grooming kit in the tack room. She takes her time, cleaning the horse to a T and brushing out his tail. Once brushed out, Serena does a French braid stretching from the top of his tail to when his tailbone ends nearly a foot down, then finishes the small braid with a loop and rubber bands it. Darien watches intently as she does the braid, amazed at her skill doing so. After tacking the stud up, Serena stretches his legs out then proceeds to tighten the girth on the saddle the remainder of the way. Serena grabs the reins and leads the stallion out to the arena while Darien follows a few feet behind.

Sitting in a chair outside of the arena, Darien settles in to eat his sandwich and watch Serena ride. He had never seen anyone go over jumps in person, he saw it on TV once and in movies but it never seemed… Interesting to him. Now that Serena was about to take the horse over a jump, Darien found he couldn't focus on anything else.

Serena mounts up and decides upon a simple warm-up; walking, trotting, then cantering the horse around the arena. After about 15-20 minutes, she decides the horse is warmed up enough to go over a smaller jump. Approaching the 1-foot jump, Serena focuses in on it and puts herself in the proper 3-point position. The horse sails over it easily and lands on the other side continuing to canter.

Darien watches as Serena sails over the first jump, and is amazed despite the small size of the jump. He figured she would be going over the three and four foot jumps she set up, soon enough. _There's something about watching her ride and go over the jumps. She seems so happy, and free. Maybe I should buy a truck and trailer so she can take him to shows? Actually, come to think of it, what is his name? Has she thought of anything yet?_

"Hey, Serena!" Darien calls out and she trots the stallion up to the fence in front of him. She pats the horse softly on his neck and whispers to him, keeping him relaxed enough to stand still. "So, have you decided upon a name for him yet? That way I can order plate for his stall door with his name on it. It's kind of the finishing touch on the barn." He smiles and reaches out to touch the horse's muzzle. He pets it lightly and nearly jumps when the horse snorts a little.

"Its alright, he's just snorting!" Serena laughs watching Darien jump back a little in front of her. "He's actually really sweet, he won't hurt you. So, there's no need to be afraid of him. Um, his name, his name… Where did you get him from, if you don't mind my asking?"

"Um, he was from a breeder in Texas. The guy bred Arabians, I think? He said that this guy was a good horse and everything; he just has Quarter Horse farther back in his lines. So, he didn't really want to keep him for breeding because you can tell he isn't pure, or something like that? I don't really have any idea how that all works, I just know that he's a gorgeous horse that I had to buy for an equally gorgeous woman." Darien replies.

"Oh, I see. Well, he is gorgeous but I can see where the breeder is coming from. He looks like an Arabian other than his hindquarters… They are rather large for an Arabian, but that makes him perfectly suitable for jumping. His loss is my gain I guess." Serena smiles happily as she continues to stroke the horse's neck. "Well, considering he is from Texas, I want to give him something Texan-like. How about…Austin! Yea, like Austin, Texas. I think that suits him."

"Sounds good, Austin it is then." Darien moves back to his seat.

"Do you want to get on him for a second? He's really a nice ride." Serena asks politely.

"No, no, no. I'm okay. Maybe another time." Darien says as he sits back down in his chair.

"Are you sure? Are you afraid of him or something? Cause there's really nothing to be afraid of, Darien. If you're afraid or nervous, you make him feel the same way. Horses are pretty neat like that. That's part of why I started riding in the first place. Actually, that reminds me, who told you that I enjoyed riding? Was it Amy? Cause I'll have to thank her, since this is the best surprise ever!" Serena asks as she starts to ride around the arena again.

"Actually, it was Andrew!" Darien yells across the arena to her. "He's the one that told me you liked horses and riding. Just about gave me the idea for this whole thing."

"Andrew? Really?" Serena asks as she comes to a stop. _I haven't really spoken to him since our little run in when I first started. How did he? Oh, I did mention it when I was talking to him, didn't I?_

"Yea, he said you couldn't afford to do it anymore? So, I figured that I had the money and land, so why not get you back into something you enjoyed? And you seem to be enjoying yourself thoroughly." Darien sees her look at Austin's neck where the reins are laying against him. "What's wrong? You seem upset all of a sudden?"

"Oh, nothing. Nothing really…" Serena picks the reins back up and goes back to riding. She decides to go over the 3-foot jump next and canters around the ring a few more times before approaching it. Approaching the jump, her mind wanders back to Andrew and the things she lied about to him. Her mind flashes to the day that Seiya found out where she was going for a few hours a week. Hours that in his mind, should've been spent with him or taking care of the house. He yelled at her and said that she was no longer allowed to go because she had other things she needed to tend to. He told her that she was being selfish for taking time for herself instead of for them.

Approaching the jump, Serena's vision blurs as her mind flashes through everything that has happened in the past few years and she loses focus. Instead of gliding smoothly over the obstacle, Austin tries to stop last second but is forced to go over the jump roughly because he was too close to stop completely. Coming down roughly on the other side, Serena falls forward onto Austin's neck. Trying to quickly right herself in the saddle, Serena pulls herself back into the proper position. Gathering the reins up, she is about to urge Austin forward but when she looks up, Darien is in front of her holding the reins by the bit and looking at her.

"Are you okay? You seemed upset but then you seemed almost like you weren't here. You most certainly weren't focusing on the jump there. You're lucky you didn't fall off right over his shoulder, Serena." Darien seems almost angry at the fact that she nearly got hurt.

"It's nothing. Really Darien, I'm fine. Can you let go please? I need to make sure I end this ride on a good note, otherwise Austin won't like when I saddle him up next." Serena practically snaps at him.

Almost immediately upon hearing Serena's tone, Darien lets go of the reins. Putting his hands up in a sign of surrender, he backs away from her.


	25. Chapter 24

Chapter 24

By: Serena Chibi

Date: April 16, 2012

Enjoy & REVIEW Reviews are what keep me going on this story.

Sure, Serena felt kind of bad for snapping at Darien but she was more scared and frustrated than angry. This was pretty much the first time she'd had anything like that happen. It was the first time she had flashes in her mind which kept her from focusing on her surroundings. She wasn't scared that she almost fell off of the horse; she was scared that she almost did it and didn't know it. She wouldn't have been able to catch herself or avoid his hooves if she wasn't aware of what was happening.

Darien backed off once he had heard Serena's tone and got out of the arena. He grabbed up the basket with food in it and pulled out a sandwich. Placing the sandwich on the chair for Serena, he made his way back to the house. Unsure of how to react to her behavior, he had decided it was probably best to just let her come to him. Something was bothering her or something, but he didn't want to press the subject. If she wanted to talk about it, then she would.

Serena takes Austin over a few more jumps, making sure that he is comfortable enough with him riding. She didn't want to leave things on a bad note with him, but instead she ended up leaving things on a bad note with Darien. Tackling the 4-foot jump one last time, Serena decides it is time to cool him out. She then notices that Darien has left a sandwich on the chair and dismounts. Grabbing the sandwich, she mounts back up and walks Austin out as she eats.

After she decides that the horse is cooled out, Serena takes him back into the barn and gets him settled in his stall. She'd come back out in a few hours to feed him again and get him all settled and blanketed for the night. Latching the door to his stall, Serena hurriedly makes her way back to the house. The sun seems to disappear behind dark clouds, and it looks like a storm is rolling in.

"Darien?" Serena walks into the kitchen and looks around. The basket is gone and she doesn't see any leftover garbage on the counter or in the sink. She does a loop around the first floor and doesn't see any trace of him. So, she tiptoes up the stairs and looks around. Looking around the corner into his office, she sees Darien sitting at his desk. He looks up to acknowledge her presence then returns to the papers in front of him. He wasn't going to talk to her until she said something first.

"I'm sorry" She whispers as she walks into the room and stands in front of his desk, unsure whether or not to sit down.

"What was that? I couldn't hear you." He sets his pen down and looks up at her. She tells him sorry once again. "It's alright, just what the hell was that? I mean, I'd like to know what it is that I'm dealing with here. I just want to be prepared, mentally you know, next time you react like that." Darien looks her in the eyes.

"It was just… Memories, is all. Nothing really, like I said. I was just taken by surprise is all, and didn't know how to react. I got scared and frustrated that I nearly fell off because of them, so I snapped at you. I shouldn't have and I am sorry for that." Serena watches Darien's face intently, waiting for a reply of some kind.

"Okay, well I appreciate you telling me. And I really appreciate the apology because that kind of caught me off guard. At least now I know what to expect." Darien answers.

"No, not what to expect. You don't need to expect me to snap every time that I get flashbacks of memories or events. I won't snap every time; I just need a second to recover myself after they happen is all. It's kind of like…When you get hit in the head, you need a second to refocus before you can see or react clearly?" Serena tells him. "Well, I am off to shower. I'll see you in a bit?"

"Yea, I was actually about to shower too. Been working all day, you know?" Darien gestures in the general direction of the barn.

Serena takes a shower and as she gets out, she hears the water kick on in the shower down the hall. Thinking about what to do, she sneaks out of the bathroom, into the bedroom and rummages through her drawers. Grabbing a handful of silk and lace from the top drawer, she hurries back into the attached bathroom. Serena runs a hand over her legs to make sure she didn't leave any stray hairs behind from shaving. Grabbing the blow-dryer she dries her hair as fast as she can and brushes it out neatly. Slipping on the deep magenta, satin bra with black lace trim, Serena looks in the mirror. _Looks good, I guess. _Then she pulls up the matching panties, and looks in the mirror. _You can do this, Serena. You can do this, breathe. _Taking a deep breath, she wonders where exactly Darien is. _Maybe he's not even in bed yet, maybe he's still getting dressed? No, he got out of the shower like ten minutes ago now. He's probably already dressed by now. _Standing up a little straighter, and putting on a brave face, Serena turns the handle leading from the bathroom to the bedroom. She swings the door open slowly and lets out a breath she had been holding.


	26. Chapter 25

Chapter 25

By: Serena Chibi

Date: April 18, 2012

Enjoy & REVIEW Reviews are what keep me going on this story. For anyone not comfortable with mature content or sex scenes, do NOT read this chapter. This chapter is part of the reason I originally rated this story M (for Mature audiences only). I tried my best to keep it tasteful though, as well as giving it meaning rather than just a sex scene to make one. This is also the first sex scene I have written, so please don't be too harsh, but let me know if it was alright or not.

Darien was lying in bed, trying to think of something for Serena and him to do. He hears the bathroom handle click and he turns the opposite direction to put his glass of water on the bedside table. "Do you want to watch a movie or-", he turns around and sees Serena standing in the doorway "something?" he finishes what he was saying in near whisper.

_This is not what I was planning…_ Serena's mind races as she stands in the doorway. She tries to fake confidence by leaning against the doorframe. Feeling almost naked, she suddenly wants to cover up.

Darien is awestruck by the image before him. It seems as if an angel were trying to seduce him. His eyes glaze over her exposed body, from her perky 36C breasts encased in a silky bra to her toned stomach and legs. Her hair flows like a golden waterfall down to her waist, giving her the appearance of something out of a fairytale.

Darien senses Serena's uneasiness and her eyes looking to the robe hanging next to her. He gets to his feet and slowly makes his way over to her. Serena's hand brushes the robe when she feels the contact of skin-on-skin as Darien's hand lightly grabs hers.

"No, don't…" Darien's voice reaches Serena's ears, and she feels her body suddenly heat up.

Darien loosens his grip on Serena's hand and moves his hand lightly along her arm and up to her cheek. His eyes meet hers and he sees uneasiness, which vanishes the closer his lips get to hers. Placing his other hand softly on her back, he pulls her closer and captures her lips with his own. She melts into his arms, feeling like putty in his hands, which only makes his heart beat faster.

Serena feels Darien's lips upon hers, and his hand upon her back, her heart seems to race faster as she thinks about the contact. Bringing her hands up to Darien's hair, she tries to deepen the kiss. Never wanting someone as much as she wants him now, her heart feels as if it will stop beating altogether. She feels his hands roaming across her back and gets lost in the sensations it brings.

Darien holds onto the back of Serena's head, maintaining the deepness of their kiss as his other hand feels the length of her body. Every touch, every sensation feels magnified by a million or more as his entire body seems to buzz with anticipation of what is to come. Not wanting to stop kissing her, he slowly moves his mouth away from hers, and kisses along her neck and down to her collarbone. He wanted to know what every inch of her tasted like.

A low moan escapes Serena's lips as she feels Darien's hand pull on her back, drawing them even closer together. Ever so slowly, he turns her towards the bed and they make their way to the bed. Serena takes small steps backwards until her calves touch the edge of the bed, then with her lips still trapped, she rolls onto her back.

His mind doesn't seem to even process any thoughts at this point, all Darien knows is sensation. The sensation of the woman he loves kissing him passionately and her skin upon his. Thoroughly enjoying the feel of Serena's skin and her kisses, Darien's mind can't help but keep screaming what it really wants. _Kiss her, love her. Make love to her, no have sex with her. _The little devil on his shoulder whispers. _Have dirty, hot sex. She wants it, you know she does; and you know you want it. So, do it. What's stopping you? Nothing, nothing is stopping you. _His mind falls back onto reason thinking _make love to her. Show her just how good it can be._

Bringing their grinding hips to a stop, Darien uses one hand to prop up Serena's back as he unclasps her bra. He leans down to taste the sweetness of the skin between her breasts and is met with a small gasp of pleasure. Sliding a hand down her side, he starts to slide her panties off, kissing down her stomach all the while. He slides them down past her knees and Serena uses her legs to push them off the rest of the way. Wrapping her legs around his waist, she can feel him through his boxers, only working to build the smoldering feeling in her stomach a little more. Darien brings his lips back up to hers and their tongues continue their battle with each other.

Feeling the sensations of Darien thrusting into her with only his boxers separating them, Serena wants more contact. _I need to feel him, all of him. I've never wanted anything so badly in my life; it's almost scary how much I want him._ Consumed by her want for him, Serena reaches for the waistband of Darien's boxers and pulls them down as far as she can. Thinking of how to keep from breaking their kiss, she pulls her legs up, latching her toes into the waistband she pushes them down the remainder of the way.

As soon as Darien feels the sensation of thrusting against Serena without any interference, he forces himself to a stop. Pulling away from Serena, he looks in her eyes. Blue clashes with blue as his eyes search hers, and he asks "Are you sure… this is what you want?" She looks at him with no uncertainty and kisses him, "Yes, this is what I want. I can't possibly explain how much I want this."

Serena lets out a small gasp and looks at Darien's chest as he eases his way into her. It felt almost as if she were a virgin again, with pain like paper-cuts as she stretches to accommodate him.

Darien can't think of anything better than this moment, the moment when they become one, or pretty close to it anyways. He sees pain on her face and his mind panics, _I'm hurting her; I knew this wasn't a good idea, she's not ready._ He moves a strand of hair behind Serena's ear, then tilts her face up to meet his. "Are you okay? Does it hurt? Because I can stop if you want me to, I don't want to hurt you."

"I'm okay. It's okay, everything is okay Darien. Don't worry about me, okay?" Serena replies in a slightly strained voice.

"Then why are you crying? What's wrong?" Darien asks sweetly as he uses a finger to brush away a tear running down the side of her face.

"Nothing is wrong, Darien. Everything is just… Perfect. Just kiss me. Please, just kiss me." She presses her lips to his in order to prevent him from saying anything else.

Upon feeling Serena's lips upon his, any worries, any fears, all just disappear. _She is an angel trying to seduce me. She's MY angel, and I can't say no to anything she wants._ Darien thinks as they get lost in every feeling, every sensation, and make sweet love until the sun goes down.


	27. Author Update

Author Update

April 1st, 2012

I regret to inform you guys that I am taking a temporary hiatus from writing anything. There have been many life changing events occurring recently, including the death of my father. I am taking some time away from everything while I try to reevaluate what I have in my life and do not. I am currently in no condition to continue this story because the story is moving to a happier place and I don't want to contaminate it with my own emotions.

I hope this isn't too much of a disappointment to everyone, as I would like to continue it once I am able to & would love for you all to continue to read. But if you choose not to, I understand. I am going to be without a computer for the next week, as I am leaving the state for a while, so please don't be upset if I seem to be ignoring any messages from you guys, I am not.

I see myself hopefully continuing this story in two weeks… but I cannot put a deadline on when I will, because as we all know, emotions are a messy thing & you can't determine when you will stop feeling them. Thank you all for your understanding, this has been a rough year so far (with my leg surgery and now family death). I hope to see you all again soon.

Sincerely,

Serena Chibi


	28. Chapter 26

Chapter 26

By: Serena Chibi

Date: July 2, 2012

Can't honestly say how good it is, I've been working on it a little here & there for the past few weeks. I lost track of where I was going with it for a second and may have wandered off. Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy it & review Hopefully, I can get more written soon, I am just trying to get my mind back on the right things.

Darien opens his eyes slowly and looks to the windows around him to try and determine if it is day or night. The sun looks to be just starting to rise, as he determines it is early morning. Then he looks to his left and sees the most beautiful thing he has ever laid eyes on. Serena lies sprawled across the opposite side of the bed on her stomach. One arm supports her head like a pillow, while the other is stretched out in his direction. Her eyes are still closed as she sleeps peacefully. Looking at her back and her shoulder-blades which stick out as if wings should be attached to them, he decides that work can wait. _No need to leave this to go to work. Especially not on a beautiful Monday morning, like today. _He can't decide if it's the weather or the woman lying in bed next to him making him think about not going to work. _The weather's nice but it's definitely her making it a beautiful morning._

Serena wakes to the sunlight shining in her eyes. Turning her head face-down in the pillow, she arches her back like a cat and rocks back, stretching out then returning back to her laying position. Hearing a small laugh she turns her head to see Darien watching her and smiling.

"That was very cat-like of you. You're adorable, you know that?" He tells her as he reaches for her shoulder and rolls her back up against him. Bringing his head around her neck, Darien kisses her cheek. "I love you." He falls back onto his pillow, "Oh, and good morning my Angel."

Serena winces a little at the familiar nickname. She bites her tongue and brushes it off. Sure, she didn't want to be called by that anymore but she also didn't want to spoil this lovely morning because of it. She flips over and plants a kiss on Darien's chest then scoots herself up to be level with his lips. Kissing his lips she lingers for a moment just looking at him. "I love you, too." She nuzzles her head into the crook of his shoulder. "I could just lie here all day with you… I don't want to leave bed today, are you okay with that?"

"That sounds perfect to me. Staying in bed is just what I had in mind. Well… maybe not for the entire day? We do have to eat at some point you know." He laughs and watches her make a face at the notion of not staying in bed. "Oh okay, maybe we'll stay in bed all day. I'm honestly not that tired though and can't imagine sleeping the day away. Maybe I'll go for a run or something then come back, okay?"

Serena looks up with an innocent little look on her face. "I never said we had to sleep, you know… I'm sure we can find something else to do. Something a little more enjoyable?" She traces a finger down his chest slowly.

"Are you trying to spoil me or something?" Darien laughs as he hugs Serena's body closer to his.

"Maybe…"She smirks and kisses him again. "That wouldn't be so bad, would it?"

"Well, no. Maybe we should spend the day out on the town or something instead though, how does that sound?" Darien asks her.

"Um, you mean out-out? Where everyone can see us? Are you ready for everyone to know about us? You're the bachelor of the town right now, that'll quickly change once they see you taking me all around town." Serena states as if she is worried for his reputation.

"Honestly, I've never cared much for that reputation, and won't care when it is gone. I love you, and don't care what anyone else thinks about me, I only care what you think and feel about me. Let them say what they want to. I've been waiting for someone to love and now that I've found you, I can't imagine ever being with someone else."

Serena blushes and hides her face. "I think that is my cue, I am off to shower." Darien eyes her playfully. "By myself. I'll be right back though, you won't miss me for long." She gets out of bed and heads to the bathroom.

"I'll miss you every second you're gone." He smirks and sits up in bed.

"You're such a romantic. Or sap, I'm not sure which." Serena laughs then winks and closes the bathroom door.

Finding herself in front of the floor to ceiling, glass shower, Serena strips out of her clothes and steps up into it. Cranking the water up to steaming hot, she stands back and waits for it to heat up. She thinks about everything that has happened in the past few days. As her mind wanders back to last night her skin starts to feel warn, and she walks head first into the water. Feeling it pound against her skin, she takes a deep breath and seems to feel any tension that was in her body just fall away.

Darien is drying his hair when Serena emerges from the bathroom, dressed and ready to go. "So, where are we headed today then?" She watches him rub a towel roughly through his hair to finish drying it.

"Well, I was thinking that we could head into town and hit all the stores and everything around there. Then I thought we could meet some friends for dinner?"

"Really, friends; like who?" Serena asks.

"I was thinking Kunzite, Jadeite, Nephrite, Andrew, and some of your friends, maybe Amy, Mina, Lita and Ray. I figured we'd all meet for dinner then maybe go to a movie or something." He says as he buttons up his shirt and looks at her. "Well, don't you look nice, I should definitely take you out, I kind of want to show you off now."

Serena tugs the back of her dress, straightening it out, then runs her hands across the front and down to the hem. It fit perfectly, now that her body had returned back to normal. It almost didn't feel right to feel this way again so quickly, she felt almost like she were betraying the memory of her passed child by going about life like normal, as if nothing happened. She sits on the edge of the bed and grabs a pair of flip flops from the drawer under the bed. It was the only drawer she had put anything into yet, and it was only shoes. She couldn't help it, she was still a woman & needed her shoes easy to access; them being in a box just wouldn't do.

"Alright, let's go before I change my mind about leaving bed." Serena laughs, taking her mind off other things. She places a hand on Darien's shoulder and kisses his cheek.


	29. Chapter 27

Chapter 27

By: Serena Chibi

Date: July 19, 2012

Serena didn't want too much attention drawn to them when they went to the mall, so she convinces Darien to drive her Audi instead of his Lamborghini. He just laughs about how awkward she is about being the center of attention. Parking in the lower parking garage at the large mall, they get out and wander towards the elevators. Darien presses the button to retrieve the elevator for them, and Serena looks around.

"I'm actually gonna take the stairs, I'll meet you up there." Serena smiles and lets go of his hand.

"Are you sure? Cause its three floors to get up to the mall." Darien asks, surprised.

"Yea, I'll race you up there actually. You take the elevator and I'll try to beat you up the stairs." Serena smiles and laughs.

"Actually, I'll just take the stairs with you. I need the exercise since I haven't gone running today." He smiles back and opens the door to the stairway for her.

Serena wobbles her way up the stairs in her high heels, holding the railing all the while. Darien walks up a few steps behind her the whole way up. "So, you were planning on racing me up the stairs how exactly?" He laughs.

"Hey, don't pick on me! I can run if I need to!" Serena shoots him a look that she's kidding and laughs.

"Well, let's test that then shall we?" Darien smirks at her.

"You think I'm really gonna run the last two floors of stairs just cause you dared me to?" She comes to a stop and raises an eyebrow at him.

"No, I think you'll do it because I'll tickle you if I catch you." He moves up so he's only a few stairs from her.

"Oh, really? You think I honestly believe that? You don't even know where I'm ticklish… do you?" A nervous look comes across her face.

"Maybe I do, maybe I don't. I'm not telling" Darien shrugs his shoulders and smiles at her. She turns on her heel and quickly starts up the steps with a smile on her face. Darien stands there and slowly makes his way up the stairs behind her, as she's reaching the top he breaks into a run so it looks like he'd been chasing her the whole way.

"See? I told you I can run if I need to." Serena places her hands on her knees and leans forward to catch her breath, laughing.

"Oh fine, you win this once. I'll beat you next time though" Darien laughs with her and places an arm over her shoulders pulling her close to his side.

They spend an hour wandering from store to store, looking at anything and everything there was to see. Darien was admiring a watch in a display case when he suddenly felt Serena's presence beside him disappear. Jumping up from his crouching position next to the case he looks to his right then his left, when he sees her fast walking towards a blonde woman. He rubs his eyes to refocus because he thinks he's seeing things for a second, as he notices the similarities between Serena and this other woman.

Serena had seen Mina prowling through some stores and once she appeared out of the last one, Serena couldn't help but run up to her.

Mina is surprised to see her friend out and about, let alone by herself. "Are you here with anyone Serena? Don't you have work or something? You kept saying how you were behind on something the other night."

"I'm actually here with Darien, so no worries, As for the project, that was like three nights ago, I already finished it.' Serena grabs Mina's hand and starts tugging her towards Darien. "Come on, Mina! I want you to meet him already!"

Coming to a stop in front of Darien, Serena lets go of Mina and moves to stand closer to him. "Um, hi there Darien," Mina stands and waves awkwardly at him. "It's nice to finally meet you."

"This is Mina, Darien.' Serena wraps an arm around his bicep and looks up at him.

"Ah, Mina. It's nice to meet you as well, I've heard quite a bit about you. Surprisingly Serena never mentioned how similar you both look. It's almost like looking at a reflection of her. Well, except there are small things that make it easy to tell you both apart, I can already tell."

"Yea, we got that all through high school. People thought we were twins or something, even though we aren't really related. There are some key differences, like' she pull a piece of her hair from behind her shoulders. "my hair is darker than hers, see? And her eyes are a much brighter blue than mine, mine are more dull... kinda like a cloudy day? Even though I've always had the sunnier personality" she laughs and casts a funny face in Serena's direction.

"Na-uh, my personality was so much brighter!" Serena can't help but laugh as she sees Mina's face though.

Darien feels almost as if he were in high school again. He looks to Serena's face and can't help but smile as a thought crosses his mind. _If she were anything like she is now in high school, I would've definitely tried to date her if I knew her back in high school._


	30. Chapter 28

Chapter 28

By: Serena Chibi

Date: August 17, 2012

_Finally. _Darien thinks as he sits heavily in the cushioned chair. He hangs his arms off the back of the chair and lets his head fall backwards. Once he hears a guy's laughter he sits up abruptly.

"Long day, huh?" Jadeite asks as he pulls out a chair at the table and sits in it.

"I never knew so much shopping was possible for two women. It's actually almost frightening. You do not want to get between a woman and her silk lingerie or pajamas." Darien sits up and lets out a quiver for emphasis.

"I could've totally told you that, dude." Andrew walks around the edge of the table to sit across from Darien. "Wait you left Mina and Serena alone… with control over your credit card? Never give a woman your credit card, Darien. That is just a bad idea, wait and see. You'll learn." Andrew lets out a laugh as he watches a look of realization come across Darien's face.

"No… She wouldn't. Would she? Nah, I trust Serena, I don't think she'd spend an obscene amount of money on clothes and things." Darien smirks back. "Speak of the Angel." Just as he sees Serena and Mina walk into the bar.

"Speak of the Angel?" Jadeite remarks with a laugh. "Seriously, dude?"

"What? I just don't think 'Devil' is really suited to her, that's all. I really don't think anyone enjoys seeing the devil, whereas I am always happy when I see her." Darien replies, and then turns to give Serena a sweet peck on the lips, as she hangs her purse on her chair beside him.

Serena drops her shopping bags on the floor next to her and pushes them slightly under the table so no one trips on them.

"Hey Andrew, long time no see." Mina smiles charmingly and sits in the chair beside him.

"Mina? Wow, you look…" Andrew sees her smile turn to a smirk of enjoyment, and laughs at her cockiness. "Same old Mina, huh? I haven't seen you since the Christmas party that Amy brought you to. How've you been?"

"I'm doing well, how are you Andrew?" Mina rests her chin on her hand and looks at him.

"I'm doing alright, seeing these two lovebirds almost makes me sick though." Andrew gestures towards Serena and Darien with a playful smirk.

'I know right? Maybe it's time for you two to get a room." Mina turns her eyes to Serena and Darien making out across from her and Andrew.

"I didn't want to say anything," Jadeite laughs from the end of the table then takes a sip of his beer.

"Oh, sorry…" Serena sits back in her seat a little straighter and blushes.

Darien looks up and smiles sheepishly. "I'm sorry for the inappropriateness of that," _I just couldn't help myself. _Darien doesn't even need to speak his thoughts; he knows both of his friends can see it.

"So, Serena. How did you like your surprise?" Andrew asks her politely.

"My surprise?" Serena asks.

"He means the stable, Angel." Darien nudges her sweetly.

"Oh, that was you? I didn't realize you actually heard what I was saying." Serena looks at him apologetically.

"Well, of course I paid attention. That was pretty much the only time you spoke to me since you came here." Andrew replies. Darien flashes him a look of near anger, forcing him to drop it. "So, how did you like your surprise?"

"I was pleasantly surprised actually. Did you know about that stallion too?" Serena's eyes light up at the thought of the gorgeous animal waiting back at Darien and hers' place.

"I did not." Andrew looks at Darien. "So, what kind of stallion is it? A stallion is a boy horse right?" He looks back at Serena.

"It's a gorgeous, golden bay, Quarab stallion." Serena sees confusion on his face when she says Quarab. "Um, sorry, a Quarab is an Arabian and Quarter Horse-Cross. He's a phenomenal horse, looks like an Arab and has the hindquarter strength of a Quarter Horse. You should see him move, it's like he's floating on a cloud or something. I can't wait to show him; I'm thinking dressage or cross country… or maybe showjumping. Ooh, maybe I should just do three-day eventing, that way it's all three!"

Everyone at the table smiles at her being so excited about something. Now they all knew what Darien and Amy had meant when they described Serena's personality as being contagious.

"Okay, well let's order and eat." Amy and Kunzite take a place at the table.

"Where are Raye and Lita?" Mina asks Amy.

"Raye called me and Lita sent me a text message, neither can be here tonight. Raye has to work late and Lita has to close the restaurant tonight." Amy tells them while she settles in her seat. "So, let's get this show on the road. What's up?"

"Nothing, we just wanted to spend some time with everyone. I spent so long not being able to talk to all my friends and I don't ever want to lose contact again. I love all of you so much; I don't know how I would've gotten through these past 6 months without you." She turns and places a chaste kiss on Darien's cheek "Or you."

"I'd like to propose a toast: to friends and the future. Here's to wishing nothing but the best for those we love." Mina raises her glass of water in a toast.


	31. Chapter 29

Chapter 29

By: Serena Chibi

Date: August 18, 2012

"Okay, I'm headed home for the night" Serena pokes her head in through Darien's office door. "See you in about an hour or so?" She walks over and grabs Darien's hand as she sits on his lap. Kissing his hand lightly, she looks at the paperwork he is examining on the desk. "You work too hard, you know that?"

"I have a feeling I do, considering how much I hear it from everyone." Darien tries to ignore her kissing his hand as he tries to focus on examining the numbers before him. "Serena, my angel, you really are distracting honey…" He groans out loud and leans back to look at her. "I really need to finish this; can we maybe do this when I get home instead?"

A trace of disappointment spreads across her face but Serena quickly replaces it with a smile. "Okay, I'll see you when you get home. I promise not to bother you until then." She stands up and Darien pulls her hand for one quick kiss.

"I love you." Darien tries his best to let her know he's sincere, and wishes he could leave with her. "And I'll see you in an hour, if that."

"I love you too." Serena slinks out of the room and down the hallway and takes the elevator to the lobby.

"Hello, Ron." Serena smiles politely as she recognizes the older man standing by the front desk. "How are you doing tonight?" She tries to maintain a happy demeanor although she can't help but feel nervous around the man. _He wouldn't hurt a fly, let alone hurt me. _She tries to reassure herself.

"I am just fine, how are you this evening Miss. Serena?" Ron smiles back at her. "Are you alright? You look a little pale."

"Oh, I am fine." Serena plays with her fingers anxiously. "Well, it was nice running into you Ron, but I really must be on my way. Have a good night." She flashes an awkward smile and practically runs out the doors and to her car.

_She really is a strange one. _Ron is left to watch in wonder as she hurries out of the dimly lit parking lot.

"I just want to get home, get in comfy pajamas and get some dinner." Serena thinks out loud as she pulls down the street with their house on it. There are a few smaller houses spread along the street but their house is one of only two houses with a gate at the end of the driveway. Reaching up for her gate opener, Serena slows the car down a little. She never liked coming to complete stops in the dark, it made her feel like a sitting duck.

Quickly pulling into the two car garage, Serena feels a little more at ease as she closes the garage door. Doing a visual circle around her car, she grabs her phone and purse then makes a dash for the man-door leading into the house. Locking the door behind her, Serena quickly disarms the house alarm then rearms it. _There, now I'm safe. No one can get me; knock on wood. _She knocks the wooden railing as she makes her way upstairs.

Taking a two-minute shower, she changes into a comfortable pair of gym shorts and a tank top. She then makes her way downstairs to the kitchen. Halfway down the stairs, Serena hears a loud grumble then the house seems to shake as a bolt of lightning flashes in the sky. Serena steadies herself and walks to the kitchen, then prepares a glass of ice water.

She clenches the glass between her hands and looks outside; each lightning flash makes her jump out of her skin. It was a stormy night when she received the news of her parents' death and ever since then, she dreaded the nights when it would storm. The rain was peaceful to her but only when it wasn't coupled with lightning and thunder.

Standing between the refrigerator and kitchen table, Serena watches the sky outside through the slider door. The sky is pitch-black and the lightning is flashing across the sky repeatedly causing her to see shapes in the vivid white. The sky goes still; she stands there seeing little white blurs in her vision from the lightning show.

Suddenly a single flash tears across the sky and the empty glass slips from Serena's hands. The crash and shatter against the floor causes her to jump in place and she feels the rough crunch of glass beneath her heels. Leaning down, she slowly picks up the pieces of glass from the floor and tosses them in the wastebasket. Looking around, she notices a shard that skittered over to the slider door and moves to retrieve it. Another flash of lightning causes her heart to stop as she swears she sees the silhouette of a man in the dark.

"Ow!" Serena yelps as her fingers slide across the shard of broken glass. In her mind, she sees the silhouette getting closer and closer in the dark. Sliding backwards across the floor, Serena pushes herself further away from the door and against the bottom of the kitchen counter. There she curls her knees against her chest and clutches them closely. Ignoring the slow trickle of blood from her hand, she closes her eyes and tries to wish everything away as she sits there in the dark.

Darien pulls into the driveway and is surprised to see no lights are on in the house. "Weird, normally she has this place lit up like a Christmas tree." He mutters to himself. A slight uneasiness spreads through his veins as he opens the door into the living room from the garage. Standing in the foyer he calls out Serena's name but is greeted with no reply. Moving quickly up the stairs he looks through the rooms and sees no sign of her anywhere.

Calling out her name again, he hurries back down the stairs. _She has to be here somewhere; her car is in the garage._ Running through the rooms, he slows down to catch his breath and enters the kitchen. _What is that, blood? _His heart jumps into his throat as his mind thinks of everything that may have happened. He follows the blood droplets past the counter and turns towards the cabinets behind it. There, huddled in a small ball, is Serena. Wrapping his arms around her quivering frame, Darien pulls her into his lap, there on the kitchen floor.

Before Serena knew it, she had fallen asleep curled up in a ball. With no one there, her mind continued to imagine the silhouette coming after her. It had broken through the glass door and was coming towards her. Suddenly it was on her, smothering her and holding her tightly. Her form quivers as she tries to fight it off in her sleep, but as she slowly wakes her body becomes more frantic. Without realizing it, Serena is lashing out against Darien's hold on her.

Unsure of what to do, Darien attempts to hold Serena closer to calm her. Her eyes meet his, and she doesn't seem to recognize him, as a matter of fact she seems to fear him. Having never been in a situation like this, he is left there to hope that she wakes soon, before she hurts him or even worse herself. "Serena? Serena, sweetie, please.' Darien pleads quietly with her.

Serena could feel the arms wrapping tightly around her as they seems to suck the life out of her. Trying to see the face of her attacker, she brings her head up to meet a face of darkness. She cannot see who it is, even though he is right before her. Ever so quietly, she hears a voice creep into her. "Serena." She is temporarily frozen as she realizes the attacker knows her name. Looking back at his face, "Serena, sweetie, please." Slowly the clouds of her dream-world part and she is able to see Darien's terrified face before her.

Darien watches Serena's eyes as she looks up at him, still unrecognizing. Slowly he watches as the fogginess in her eyes departs and her eyes finally look at him as himself not an unknown. A look of shame spreads across her face as she turns away from him and shoves her face into his right shoulder. Holding her tightly with his right arm, Darien reaches behind him onto the counter and feels around for a towel. Retrieving the dry cloth, he reaches for her right hand, wanting to stop the bleeding.

Serena pulls her hand closer to her chest as he tries to grab it. "I just want to see it, Serena", he speaks to her like a parent would to their child. Reaching for it a second time, Darien is able to pull it away from her chest and places the cloth into her hand as she re-clenches her fist. They stay like this for nearly a half-hour, Darien rocking Serena slightly and speaking words of love to her. Wanting to know what happened; Darien decides that it can wait until he gets her completely calmed down.

Slowly releasing her from his grasp, Darien goes to stand up. He feels her body start to quiver a little more without his presence there. "I'll be right back. I'm just going to grab a bandage for your hand, okay?" He reaches down, smoothing some of Serena's hair back behind her ear and touching her chin. Tilting her face to meet his gaze, she nods slightly.

Quickly retrieving the first aid kit from the foyer closet, Darien returns to Serena's side. Trying to regain herself, Serena stands up and wobbles to the kitchen table. Bracing her hands against the table, she places herself roughly into a chair beside it. She watches as he scoots a chair into the open so he can sit right in front of her. Almost unwillingly, Serena places her cutup hand on his knees. Not wanting to meet his gaze, she looks away as he places steri-strips to seal the larger cuts then carefully wraps her hand up.

"Are you hurt anywhere else?" Darien asks gently.

"No, I stepped on a little glass but I'm sure my feet are fine. I'm sorry about the mess." Serena casts her eyes downward. _I can't even handle being alone during a little thunder storm. Now he's stuck cleaning up my mess._ Standing up, Serena goes to retrieve the large piece of glass that she cut herself on initially. "I'll finish cleaning up the mess, don't worry."

Surprised and worried by Serena's sudden want to finish cleaning, Darien moves towards her. Returning to her feet after picking up the glass, Serena jumps when she turns around and someone is standing there.

"Here, let me take care of it." Darien tells her politely.

"No, really I have it under control." Serena stands her ground.

"No, you don't Serena. Just let me take care of it, I don't want you to cut yourself up any more than you already have. Don't worry about cleaning, I can get it. Just go get changed and ready for bed."

For the first time since waking up, Serena looks down at her clothes. There were spots of blood all across the front of her shirt and a few on her shorts. Unaware of Darien's hand on her wrist, Serena looks up then gently places the glass in his other hand, waiting expectantly below hers.

"Okay…" She trails off and retreats to their room. Deciding that another shower is the best idea, she is careful not to get her bandaged hand wet. Tossing on a fresh shirt and pair of boy-short underwear, Serena climbs into bed and wraps the blankets tightly around her. _I know Darien is right downstairs but… I feel so alone right now. It feels like no one has any idea what I'm going through._

Taking a shower, Darien tries to wash away all his concerns and worries. It only partly works, as he sighs heavily. _I love her but I'm always afraid of what may happen if I'm not here. I couldn't bear it if something happened while I was gone, something far worse than what happened tonight. What if Seiya found her here while I was at work?_ His fists clench then Darien tilts his face into the steady stream of hot water and lets out a long breath.

Feeling the weight of Darien on the bed, Serena pretends to be asleep as he pulls her closer. _Maybe if I'm asleep, he won't bother me about it._

Her hope is short-lived as his voice reaches her ears. "Serena. I know you aren't asleep, I think we need to talk about this."

"I accidentally dropped a glass and I cut myself trying to clean it up." Serena states quickly.

"Is that all?" Darien's eyes tell her that he wants the whole story.

"No… I had a bad dream, I guess? The lightning scared me, so I dropped my glass of water, then I thought I saw something in the yard. It was nothing, really."

"What was your dream about?"

"I um, was being smothered… by a shadow. I thought I saw a person in the yard, I saw a silhouette. That's when I accidently cut myself on the glass, and I tried to get back away from the door. I guess I cut my hand up worse by pushing myself backwards across the floor." Serena looks sheepishly at her hand resting on Darien's side.

"So, you saw someone in the yard? Are you sure?" Darien seems concerned by the fact that someone was evidently trespassing on his property.

Her nod is slow, "Or at least I thought I did. I don't know where reality ends and the dream begins though, to be honest. I swear I saw someone and that's why I backed up, but then he broke through the glass slider and was coming after me. He started grabbing me but then he crushed me to him, I think he was trying to suffocate me. But then I woke up and it was only you holding me. I'm sorry if I hurt you while I was sleeping…" Serena finishes telling him sadly.

"How long has this been going on? The nightmares; both asleep and waking, I mean." Darien asks worriedly.

"I'll be fine, honestly Darien. Don't worry about me, please don't." Serena looks at him with pleading eyes.

"How long?" He tries to ignore her pleads. Knowing she can't lie to him, Darien knows she will answer him.

"For a few months… I had them when I first moved in with Amy, but they stopped for a while when I first started seeing you though."

"When did they start back up?" She looks at him with pleading eyes again. _I know she doesn't want to be a victim but she is. After everything that has happened, she is a victim, and when she stops being so headstrong, maybe I can actually help her feel better._ Darien thinks as he waits for an answer.

"They started again when I saw Seiya at the gala we went to… He recognized me there. I know he would've found me eventually but I was nowhere near ready to face him yet. It was not too long before that when I found out I was pregnant, seeing him just made me feel even sicker. The nightmares have been noticeably fewer when I am with you though. It's easier to deal with when I am with you, you help me to forget." Serena tells him.

"Did you try to get a restraining order against him or anything? I'm sure there's something we can do to keep him away." Darien asks.

"I tried once while he was at work, back when I was living with him. I was going to leave the same day but the police said I didn't have enough evidence against him to get a restraining order. I had a few minor bruises at the time but because I hadn't filed any police reports before, they couldn't just take my word that it was him. I was crushed and returned home, where he asked where I had been. That was a very bad night to say the least…" Serena cringes. "I never went to the police after that because I didn't want to risk getting in trouble again."

"Well, tomorrow I am going to call and get a new house alarm installed, okay? We'll get one of the ones with the motion sensors by the windows and doors, that way no matter how someone could get in, the police will be alerted." Darien tells her, while trying to be objective. _Stupid police and their stupid rules; they could've put a stop to this long ago but they wouldn't believe her._


	32. Chapter 30

Chapter 30

By: Serena Chibi

Date: August 19, 2012

After a long night of tossing and turning, Darien wakes up around 6am the following morning. Quiet as a mouse, he moves across the room to the curtain. Having pulled the curtain all the way around the room to cover all the windows last night in order to soothe Serena, he pulls a corner back to look outside. Everything outside is only visible in shades of grey; he knows it's too early to be awake.

He doesn't want to risk Serena hearing him make a phone call, so he goes downstairs and lies across the living room couch. Resting his head on the arm of the couch, Darien holds his phone in front of him, browsing through the contacts lists. _Amy, Amy, Amy… there you are! Maybe I should just text her? No, you don't really ask a question like that in a text. Ah, I should call her._ Clicking the send button he places the phone to his ear. After ringing three times, Darien is about to hang up when he hears it pick up on the other end.

Amy is sound asleep in Kunzite's arms when her phone starts to ring. Neither stirs the first few times it rings, and then Kunzite wakes up just enough to pick it up. "Hello?" he asks as Amy starts to wake.

"Kunzite? Is that you?" Darien voice comes across as surprised. "I thought I called Amy's phone, didn't I?"

"Oh, yea you did… at 6:17 in the morning… what's going on this early, Dare?" Kunzite sounds worried.

"Um, could I talk to Amy really quick? And don't get too worked up, it's nothing too important. I just need to ask her something about Serena really quick, that's all."

"Uh, okay sure. Here she is" Amy pulls the cellphone from Kunzites hands and pulls the blanket further around herself.

"I heard that you wanted to ask me something about Serena? What can I answer for you at this ungodly hour, Darien?" Amy groans as she looks at the time on her alarm clock.

"Sorry for calling so early but I didn't want to risk Serena hearing what I have to ask." Darien replies. "Do you know anything about her dreams or nightmares?"

"Uh yea, she used to have pretty bad nightmares when she came to me. She'd have a hard time sleeping and occasionally she would want to sleep in my room to feel a little less alone. As far as I know she hasn't had any as of late, has she?"

"Well, she had a pretty vivid one last night and ended up hurting herself. She thinks she saw something outside and dropped a glass to the floor. She cut her hand up pretty badly but that's not the part that concerns me. She was curled up in a corner, shaking when I got home. I'm not sure if she was shaking because the nightmare or something else, though." Amy can hear the questioning in Darien's voice.

"What exactly are you asking, Darien?" Amy knows the question but doesn't want to believe it. _How did I miss this?_ "Do you think she has Post Traumatic Stress Disorder?"

"You said it, not me. And yes, I think she has PTSD." A slight sadness spreads through his voice.

"So, what do you intend to do about it? Or what should _we _do about it?" Amy asks and Kunzite perks up beside her.

"I think we just need to keep a better eye on what she's doing or where she's going. She's been seeing things where there isn't anything. She admitted to me last night that she can't tell the difference between reality and her nightmares, at times."

"That sounds kind of serious though, Darien. Do you think she is a danger to herself or people around her? "Because we all have to work and you know that she won't stay out of the office. Even if you electrically charged the front door she'd still find a way in to get the job done."

"Yes I know, she's my little workaholic." Darien chuckles lightly. "But she needs to get better, her mental and physical health are more important than her working. It's not like she really needs to work right now, I am willing to help her with any bills or anything in the meantime. Do I take her to the hospital; see about some kind of medication or something to help her?"

"Well, you could see about some anti-anxiety meds or possibly a sedative to help her sleep? It would probably be a good idea for her to go talk to someone like a psychologist as well. Combine all those things and it should really help her, I'd imagine." Amy tells him with a little perk in her voice, trying to lift Darien's mood a little.

"I've already been away too long, hopefully she hasn't woken up yet. I have to go now, thanks Amy." He waits for her to say goodbye then hangs up the phone. He's so tired he practically stumbles up the stairs and back into the bedroom.

Serena had woken up a few minutes after Darien and upon hearing faint talking downstairs; she wanted to know who he was speaking to so early in the morning. Carefully making her way down the stairs, Serena stands close to the bottom, where she is sure Darien can't see her and listens. _Shaking because the nightmare or something else… I think she has PTSD… hospital…_Serena hears pieces and parts but understands; she had been thinking the same thing herself but didn't want to admit it out loud.

Upon hearing a small chuckle from Darien, Serena can tell the serious part of the conversation is over and heads back to bed. Lying down she watches the door, waiting for him to come back.

Darien walks into the room and is startled when he sees baby-blues looking at him. "What are you doing awake already, Angel?" he pulls back the blanket and crawls in next to her.

"I um, heard you talking downstairs." Serena sees Darien try to jump to explain. "Uh-uh," she presses the tip of her right index finger to his lips. "I think it's a good idea for me to go to the doctor and see about a medication or something. I need something because I can't not-sleep for much longer."

Putting his arm around her shoulder, Darien pulls her closer to him. "Okay, sweetie," Tangling his hand in her hair, Darien kisses Serena's forehead and holds her face to his chest tenderly. "Okay, we'll do that in the morning, but for now can you just try to get some more sleep… for me?" He feels Serena nod against his chest. "I'll be here the whole time and when you wake."


	33. Chapter 31

Chapter 31

By: Serena Chibi

Date: August 21, 2012

Reviews are always appreciated, so if you read please be sure to leave me a little comment or something to let me know how I'm doing :)

P.S. Thank you to SerenityMoonGoddess, GinnyPotter0183 & LoveInTheBattlefield for your consistent reviews

After speaking to the doctor, he explains that most of her symptoms point to PTSD. He prescribes an antidepressant to help with the day to day anxiety and a sedative to help her sleep. After asking whether the sedative would help to keep her from lashing out physically in her dreams. The doctor explains that the sedative he prescribed would reduce her reaction time, so it may stop her physical reactions or at least make them less violent.

"You cannot take these then try to drive or anything though; do you understand that Mrs. Tsukino? These are rather powerful sedatives; they will make you drowsy within an hour after taking them. So, I would recommend only taking them when you are ready to settle in for the night." The doctor tells her.

"Okay, yea I understand. Thank you, doctor." Serena takes the pieces of paper with the prescriptions written on them. "Should I start both of them tonight or start one tonight and the other tomorrow?"

"No, you can start both tonight if you feel comfortable with that. I'd recommend taking the antidepressant with food and drink otherwise it may upset your stomach. The sedative is fine to take on an empty stomach but it may start to kick in sooner than the hour if that is the case though, just remember that. A little dizziness or disorientation is normal, so don't panic if you experience either one."

"Thanks again, doctor. I'll be in for my follow-up appointment in a month." Closing the door behind her, Serena feels Darien's presence close beside her. A gentle hand on her shoulders, they proceed to pay the doctor bill then head home.

Walking into the kitchen Serena states, "I'm going to go see Austin for a while, maybe go for a trail ride. Why don't you go to work for a little bit? I'll be fine, I swear, you go worry about your company." She gives him a sincere smile.

"Alright, I'll go to work but only because you said so." He winks at her then looks to the clock. "It's only quarter to four right now, so I'll be gone until maybe 7:30… 8 o'clock. How about you whip us something up for dinner so we can sit down for a nice meal before bed tonight?"

"Yea, I'll make something when I get back in. I think I'm going to take Austin for a ride through some of the woods behind the house today."

"Just be careful, it's pretty rough and tumble in there. It's been untouched for almost twenty years now. No galloping in there, please." Darien states abruptly.

"Fine, no galloping out there. I'll just run laps around the house then" Serena sticks out her tongue playfully.

"Well, good to see you're feeling better already. Just be careful and be sure to change your bandages on your hand when you come back in. Actually, are you sure riding is even a good idea? I mean, your hand was pretty badly cut up last night, Serena." Darien looks at her quizzically.

"Yes, I'll be fine. Besides, Austin is so soft in the mouth that I barely have to touch the reins in order to give him signals. He responds better to voice and leg commands, mostly voice. But, because you are worried, I'll be extra careful not to reopen the cuts on my hands, okay? Now, get to work and stop worrying about me, it'll be fine." Serena smirks then waves at Darien as she opens the slider door to go out back.

"Love you too." Darien mumbles.

"I heard that! And you know I love you." She puts her hand to her lips and blows a kiss his direction then closes the door.


	34. Chapter 32

Chapter 32

By: Serena Chibi

Date: September 19, 2012

Reviews are always appreciated, so if you read please be sure to leave me a little comment or something Thank you: SerenityMoonGoddess, LoveInTheBattlefield, MangaMania & Lunarstar99 for reviewing

Skipping to the barn, Serena is greeted by a happy neigh as she walks in the front door. She happily strokes Austin's nose then walks past, to a shelf almost across from his stall. Plugging in a radio, she tunes it to a country station and turns it up. Singing and dancing along to the music, she goes back to Austin's stall and puts his halter on him.

Just outside his stall, Serena puts Austin in the cross-ties then hurries to the tack room to grab a box of brushes and grooming supplies. Grabbing the rubber curry comb first, she proceeds to curry Austin's neck, laughing as he cocks his head sideways in enjoyment from the scratching. After believing she's loosened most of the dirt in Austin's coat, Serena grabs a soft brush and proceeds to brush him down with it.

Moving the brush along his neck and flicking the loose hair and dirt off of him, Serena watches as Austin arches his neck in pleasure. She laughs and continues to brush him until his coat looks like a perfect copper penny, glistening and new.

Reaching for the saddle, Serena runs her hands along the smooth leather then grabs onto the horn. Thinking about it, she looks at the matching western bridle. Then just as quickly as she stopped to think, she grabs the bridle instead of the saddle, deciding to ride Austin bareback. Sliding the bit into his mouth then latching the throatlatch, she leads Austin out of the barn and climbs onto his back with one swift movement.

Urging the horse into a walk, Serena makes her way along the pasture fences and to the clearing just before the forest. She promised Darien that she wouldn't gallop in the woods. _I didn't say anything about trotting, though._ She thinks to herself as she urges Austin on. _Besides, it doesn't look too rough out here._ Serena carefully trots Austin through the woods with the sun shining through the trees.

She looks down at Austin's neck and watches the coppery ripples of his coat in the sunlight. Mesmerized by the reflecting light upon her horse's coat, Serena doesn't focus on where Austin is walking until she hears splashing and is forced to look up. She is greeted with the sight of a small river, only about 4 feet wide. Seeing that the water is clearly flowing to her left, Serena turns Austin to walk upstream, in hopes of finding the source.

Following the water for about half an hour, Serena starts to lose hope in finding the source anytime soon, when she hears the faint sound of water splashing. Unsure of whether it is the source of the stream or something else, her senses go on high alert. Moving ever so slowly, closer to the sound, she hears a steadiness about it and notices that Austin doesn't appear spooked or wary. As the trees start to open into another clearing, Serena lets out a breath she had been holding.

The trees seem to part before her and the river opens up into a pool just below a waterfall. Nothing rushing or extraordinary but still pleasant and relaxing, the waterfall flows slow and smooth into the pool below. Steering Austin onto the grassy clearing she brings him close to the edge of the pool and looks down. Once she notices that the pool is crystal clear and sees a few small fish swimming below, Serena lets her rein loose for Austin to drink a little.

After relaxing by the water for a while, Serena decides it's time to head back. Unsure of which direction is home, she sits and thinks quietly to herself. Closing her eyes, she envisions the route she took, in relations to the barn and figures where to go from here. Seeing a deer trail in the direction she needs to go, Serena urges Austin through the low-lying branches, ducking closely to his neck.

After only 10 minutes, she is greeted with the edge of the pastures. A smile spreads across her face as she pushes Austin into a gallop and lets him run. Happily obliging, Austin jumps as he hurries into a fast pace and continues as she maneuvers him around the property and circling around the house. After letting him run to his hearts' content, Serena walks Austin until his chest no longer feels warm to the touch.

Looking at her phone, she realizes that she should get back into the house soon, seeing as Darien should be home soon. Walking Austin back to the barn, she slides the bridle off and he continues on into his stall. Closing and locking the door behind him, Serena returns the bridle to the tack room then kisses Austin's nose. The feeling of velvet against her skin makes her kiss him again, then laughing she closes the barn behind her and runs to the house.

Quickly bringing a pot of water to a boil on the stove, Serena throws some pasta noodles in. Turning the flame down so that it won't boil over, she hurries up the stairs to shower. Within 5 minutes, Serena is running down the stairs and pulling her shirt over her head as she gets into pajamas for the night. Draining the pasta, she rinses it then returns it to the pot and stares at it, unsure of what to do next.

_What should I put with it; what kind of sauce? Do we even have any sauce?_ She scrambles around the cupboards only to find a can of tomato soup and a jar of expired Prego spaghetti sauce. "Seriously," She thinks out loud. _Well, what now?_ Tossing the expired sauce in the garbage, she opens the refrigerator door. _Wait a minute! We have milk…_ She grabs the gallon. _And parmesan cheese!_ Serena grabs the brick of fresh parmesan then closes the door with her leg.

Darien was looking over the schedule for the remainder of the week at work. He had been slowly, inadvertently handing the reins over to Amy while he spent more time at home and with Serena. But he knew if he were to maintain the trusting relationship he had built over the years with his business partners, he would need to attend more meeting than he had been.

"So, what's new?" Jadeite raps lightly on the office door, pressing it open a little more, so that he can slip into the room. Darien looks up from the schedule, certain restlessness in his eyes. "I just noticed your car in the parking lot and figured I'd stop in to see how you're doing. Judging by the looks of you, I stopped in not a moment too soon."

"What do you mean by that?" Darien asks.

"You just seem," Jadeite receives a look telling him to choose his next words carefully, "tired."

"Well, that's because I am." Darien runs a hand through his almost scraggly looking hair. Having been nearly two months since his last haircut, it was a little longer than usual and more unruly. "I just don't think I will sleep until he is behind bars."

"Seiya, you mean?" Jadeite pulls out the chair across from Darien and plants himself in it.

"Yea, I just keep thinking that if I'm not there, he is going to steal her or something. I worry that I won't be there to protect her when she needs me, and I know it makes her nervous to an extent too."

"Well, there's your first mistake. She isn't a piece of property or something, he can't just take her like that without an repercussions. I understand there is something wrong with this guy but do you really think he'll risk getting in trouble for something like that? Wouldn't that ruin his company if he went to prison or something? Especially for something like breaking and entering or theft, cause people trust him with their money and investment in his company."

"I guess, but he did risk that when Serena ended up in the hospital 5 months back, right?"

"Yea, but you can't keep worrying like this. You need to figure something out so that you feel more comfortable with leaving her alone. You need to sleep some night dude, you're starting to kind of look like crap." Jadeite raises a hand, "No offence. Why not get a dog or something?"

"A dog, that's it! We could get a dog!" Darien's face lights up at the idea. "Thanks man!" Looking at his phone, he then grabs all the papers in front of him and b-lines for the door. "I gotta go but we should hang sometime this week. Maybe I'll throw a little get together at the house or something."

Jadeite knows that something else is on his friend's mind; something he had been thinking about since the day he fell in love with Serena; not that he wasn't happy with her but he wanted more. He had been openly obsessing about marriage, kids and a family until Serena came along. He only cut back on how vocal he was about his wants for fear of scaring Serena in the opposite direction.

Darien walks out of the room, many thoughts going through his mind as he pieces together a plan. He lays out everything in his mind, and tries to think of a day that would be best for such an occasion. _Sometime this week_, he thinks to himself as he climbs in his car and starts home.

Upon walking into the house, Darien is greeted with an aroma that he can't quite put a finger on. _What is that? It smells absolutely delicious._ He hangs up his jacket and heads for the kitchen. The scent grows stronger and the kitchen feels a little warmer than the rest of the house.

"Oh, there you are! I was wondering when you'd be getting home." Serena smiles as she piles some of the pasta onto two plates in front of her.

"Yea, sorry I was running a little behind. Just catching up on work and one of the guys wanted to talk.. Now what is this?" He comes up behind Serena, wrapping his arms around her waist and resting his head on her shoulder. "It smells wonderful whatever it is. I can't wait to try it."

"It's a fettuccini alfredo, one of the few things I actually taught myself to make without a recipe. It's not exactly restaurant quality, but it's the best I could do with what we had here."

"Mm, I can't wait to try it." He kisses her neck then works his way up to her cheek.

"You keep doing that and we may not get around to dinner, you know…" Serena trails off, tilting her head and exposing her neck to him a little more. He takes the invite, nuzzling along her neck as she cranes against him.

"If I didn't know any better, I would say that you weren't interested in dinner at all." His voice tickles her ear, and he watches her attempt to put more pasta on the plate but she is so unfocused that the noodles don't move any more than an inch then fall back into the pot. Darien lets out a small chuckle, then "As tempting as that may be… I am actually starving and would really like some of your pasta. Maybe, later?" Reaching around her, he grabs the closest plate and heads to the table, giving Serena a wink.

Serena is left standing there. She turns around her face flushed and leans back against the counter next to the stove. Opening the medicine cabinet, Serena produces a small orange bottle with a white cap. Turning it over in her hands, she reads the label 'Valium – Take one a night as needed. Do NOT increase dosage without speaking to Physician first. May take anywhere from 20-30 minutes to take effect and last for 6-8 hours after ingestion… ' _That's reassuring._ She thinks to herself as she unscrews the cap and takes a pill from the container. Grabbing her plate and a glass of water, Serena sits across from Darien at the table,

"This is delicious, Serena. You need to give yourself a little more credit. I wouldn't mind if you made this for dinner every night…. Well, every other night." Darien smiles at Serena as he spins more pasta onto his fork. He watches a blush spread across Serena's face and she smiles as she takes a bite of her own. After a few more bites, she pops the pill in her mouth, washing it down with the water.

"Was that?" Darien gestures at her from across the table.

"Yea, it was. It should kick-in in about a half hour though, so I have plenty of time to finish eating."

"Oh…" Darien lets out a small sigh.

Taking a few more bites, Serena puts her dishes in the dishwasher and loads the detergent. "Can you just box up the rest of this Honey, then start a load of dishes? I already got it ready to go, you just need to put the rest of the dirty dishes in there then press start." Serena walks around the table and rests her head atop Darien's as she waits for a reply.

"Yea, I'll take care of it. Then I'll be right up for bed." He practically grumbles.

Serena can tell he is a little disappointed at the fact that she would be asleep soon. Leaning in close to his ear she whispers "Maybe tomorrow night, if you come home from work a little earlier." And nibbles on his ear a little.


	35. Chapter 33

Chapter 33

By: Serena Chibi

Date: October 17, 2012

Reviews are always appreciated, so if you read please be sure to leave me a little comment or something Thank you: SerenityMoonGoddess, LoveInTheBattlefield & GinnyPotter0183 for reviewing. Sorry if this pops up in your updates twice but I wanted to go back to fix a few small errors I noticed before I forget to altogether.

Serena wakes the next morning feeling more rested than she has been feeling the past few months. Looking next to her, she is surprised to find Darien still sound asleep. Not wanting to wake him yet, she sneaks downstairs to make some pancakes for breakfast. Looking in the refrigerator she finds a handful of brown eggs, _mmm my favorite!_ Grabbing bread out of the pantry she tosses some in the toaster then after making a quick batch of pancake batter she taste tests it. _Perfect. Dropping_ the batter onto the griddle and turning the heat down a little so that they will cook but not burn, Serena hurries up the stairs to wake up Darien.

"Good morning, honey." Serena shakes him lightly. He stirs a little but starts to turn away from her. "c'mon, wake up!" she jumps up onto the bed next to him. Straddling his sleeping figure, she bounces up and down, causing him to bounce with the mattress.

Reaching up and grabbing her hips, Darien holds her still against him. Squinting against the sunlight, he groans "I'm awake, woman, I'm awake!" Still holding onto her hips, he rolls her off his lap and pins her against the bed. Serena squirms and laughs beneath him as he tries to kiss her.

Finally catching her lips with his, Darien continues to pin her lightly and leans a little harder into her.

"Wait! Darien – pancakes – burn." Serena tries to squeeze out that she was already making breakfast to Darien but him kissing her won't allow her to. _Well, at least I put the eggs back in the fridge before coming up here._ She laughs to herself.

Darien kisses along her collarbone and slowly trails up towards her ear, earning a small gasp from Serena. Seeing her lips parted ever so slightly, he seizes the moment to trace his tongue along her upper lip; tasting the sweetness of pancake batter, he slips his tongue into her mouth and deepens the kiss. He can feel her surprise and immediate arousal as she strokes his tongue with her own, moaning all the while. Feeling her strain a little more against him, Darien loosens his hold upon her arms.

Darien is surprised at the speed in which Serena moves her hands, one into his hair and the other against his back. Serena wraps her legs around his torso, pulling him closer against her. At the feeling of how turned on Darien is, Serena remembers something else she left turned on.

"Wait, Darien!" Serena pulls her lips from his. As he comes back in for a kiss, she turns her head slightly. "I had breakfast going; the pancakes are about to burn!"

Darien pulls his face back a little. _T__hat batter did taste really good. But I'm a little hungrier for something else… _He considers it for a moment. "Just let them burn then." With a look of surprise spreading across her face, Darien leans in to seize her mouth once more. Within a minute, he feels Serena playing with the waistband of his boxers. "It seems like someone else woke up with the same thing on their mind." Darien gives her a tired smirk.

Sensing his tiredness, Serena pushes him a little, her signal for him to lie down instead of her for the time being. Sitting on Darien's stomach, Serena runs her hands along his chest, massaging him lightly.

Leaning down for another kiss, Serena's hair falls around her face and Darien's. Laughing, she sits back up and runs a hand through her hair slowly moving it away from her eyes. Darien's hand reaches up to cup the side of her face and he just looks at her dazedly.

"What are you looking at?" She eyes him curiously, crooning against his hand.

"Sorry, you're just so beautiful, that's all." Darien strokes her face gently, while gazing at her, love apparent in his eyes.

"No, I'm not." She turns away, going back to running her hands along his chest and arms.

"What are you talking about? You're the most beautiful girl I've ever met; inside and out. And I'll keep telling you that every day until you start to see what I see." Sliding his hand behind her head, Darien pulls her down for an intimate kiss.

After a few minutes, they smell something different in the air. Something slightly…burnt.

"The pancakes!" Serena starts to panic just as the smoke detector goes off. "Oh no, they're completely ruined now!" Jumping off the bed, Serena tries to piece together an outfit from her clothes on the floor. _Just in case the fire department shows up,_ she thinks as she pulls up her sweatpants.

"It's alright, there's no sense in rushing now. They're already burnt, Serena." Darien laughs as he watches her get dressed quickly. Grabbing his boxers, he puts them on and follows her running figure down the stairs.

In the kitchen there is the strong smell of burned pancakes and a gray fog in the air. Serena is by the sink scrubbing the griddle when Darien finally walks in. In the sink next to her is a handful of black pucks that used to be their breakfast.

Suddenly feeling sad about the state of her breakfast, tears start to fall from her eyes as she scrubs away at the griddle. Almost immediately, she feels ridiculous for crying over her pancakes and starts to laugh. Unable to control her tears, she stands there laughing and crying, all the while feeling like there is something wrong with her.

"It's not that big of a deal, sweetie. We can buy a new griddle if it doesn't come clean, and I can make more pancakes if you want." Darien wraps his arms around her and kisses the top of her head.

"No, I know that. I don't know what I'm crying for though, I'm not really that sad about it." She continues to laugh at herself and drops the now clean griddle in the sink. "It's like I have no control over my emotions… It must be that time of the month or something." Serena grabs a towel and dries the griddle, then places it back on the stove.

"So, scrambled eggs and pancakes like I planned?" Serena grabs the eggs she already scrambled from the fridge, placing it on the counter next to the griddle. Then quickly grabbing some more eggs, flour, baking soda and a handful of other ingredients, she whips up another batch of pancake mix.

Darien watches from over Serena's shoulder as she makes another batch of pancakes. "How do you know how to make so many things from the top of your head like that?" He asks with clear amazement in his voice.

"Oh, this? I've had plenty of practice, spent a lot of time cooking when I was waiting up for Seiya to come home. Plus, in the few months after my parents died up until my brother left for the military, I always wanted to make sure he had food when he got out of work." Serena pours the batter onto the hot griddle, and watches as it bubbles up.

"Hmmm, you know, when we have kids they are going to be spoiled with all this home-cooking. Heck, I feel spoiled with it already." Darien laughs, running his index finger along the rim of the bowl. Bringing his finger to his mouth, he licks the batter off, then retreats to the table after pouring a mug of coffee.

"Kids?" Serena raises an eyebrow. _I'd be lucky to have one, let alone two at this point. What is he thinking?_

"Yea, I mean, you do want them right?" Darien continues reading his newspaper like there's nothing to it.

"Um, yea, I do." Serena falls silent and pulls the last of the pancakes off the griddle, plating them with the scrambled eggs.

"So, I was thinking. Why don't we go somewhere?" Darien doesn't even bother to look up, he just continues sipping his coffee and reading.

"Really? Where to and for how long? We both have responsibilities here, so we can't just disappear for too long." Serena cuts a piece of her pancake with the side of her fork, and then eats it happily.

"I was thinking we could go to Colorado for 3-4 days? I figured the weekend, Monday and Tuesday." His eyes meet hers over the coffee mug, and a smile can be seen on his face, when he sees her so cheery.

"Colorado? I've never been there! Well, I've never really been out of the state, but I've definitely never been there. What are we going to do? Can we go into the mountains?" A slew of thoughts find their way out of Serena's mouth all at once.

"It's a surprise, we're actually going there to pick something up; something that is going to be coming back home with us." Darien tries to refrain from spoiling the surprise to her as he quickly fills his mouth with pancake, assuming she wouldn't make him talk with his mouth full.

_Boy was I ever wrong._ He thinks to himself as Serena continues to try and bribe the secret out of him for the next five minutes, as they eat their breakfast.


	36. Chapter 34

Chapter 34

By: Serena Chibi

Date: February 14, 2013

Reviews are always appreciated, so if you read please be sure to leave me a little comment or something Thank you: SerenityMoonGodness, LoveInTheBattlefield, Sweetmaj010, GinnyPotter0183 & a Guest for reviewing

In a matter of days, Serena finds herself walking out of the airport and into unfamiliar territory. The air is cool against her skin; fall has begun to set in everywhere but she isn't used to anything quite this cold. The lowest it ever got back home was still almost 50-degrees, although with it being nearly ten-thirty at night here it was only 34-degrees outside.

Seeing a small shiver spread across Serena's frame, Darien pulls his jacket open and wraps it around her. "You've really never been far from home have you?" he asks, pulling her closer to him for warmth.

"N-not really, no" Serena's teeth chitter as she speaks. Having always lived in California, the nearly twenty-degree temperature change felt a lot more like a thirty-degree difference to her. _I'm really not dressed for something like this._ She thinks to herself, looking down at her lightweight jacket, jeans and tennis shoes; then to Darien's boots, jeans and leather jacket.

"Let's just head to the hotel. Then we'll go get some more suitable clothes for you tomorrow." Darien laughs. Just then, a black Audi pulls to a stop in front of them, and a teenage boy jumps out.

"Mr. Shields, here is your rental for the next 4 days." The kid holds the keys out for Darien to take them from him.

"Thank you… Evan. I appreciate you bringing it around for us." Darien looks at the young man's nametag then his face; he had to be no more than 18-years-old. _He's probably working to get through college. _He thinks as he takes the keys. "Here, hold up a minute." Darien raises his hand then reaches into his pocket to retrieve his wallet. Handing it to Serena, since his left arm is keeping her warm, he whispers "Pull a $10 out for him."

While Darien puts his wallet away, Serena reaches out to hand Evan the money. His face lights up a little and he thanks them quickly then turns to retreat into the airport. Serena looks up to Darien and they both laugh at the young boy's reaction.

"So, remind me again why we are coming here into this subzero weather?" Serena asks sarcastically and shivers with her teeth chattering.

"I know you've never really been anywhere like this before and I'd really like you to see the snow and feel the difference in weather. California is nice and warm pretty much all year-round but here… they get extreme amounts of snow and pretty cold temperatures up in the mountains; which is kind of where we're heading." Darien laughs and hugs Serena closer to him as he sees a look of '_Are you kidding me?_' spread across her face. "It'll be fine, you'll actually enjoy it." _We'll see,_ she thinks, picking up one of her luggage bags.

Getting into the elevator at the hotel, Serena gives Darien a curious look as he clicks the '21' button.

"What? I figured since you've never been outside of Cali before I would splurge a little. I may have gotten us the, um, Penthouse suite." Darien cocks his head to side a little shyly.

Serena smirks upon seeing his boyish reaction. _He's so adorable._ "Thank you, although I'm sure you'll enjoy it just as much as me." Serena winks at Darien then places a sweet kiss on his cheek, which only serves to make him blush further. Entering the room, they go about getting ready for bed and unpacking a few of the necessities. Darien enters the bathroom to get cleaned up, as Serena climbs into bed.

"I hope you brought a nice dress with you because I kind of made us dinner plans for the night after tomorrow." Darien says from the bathroom doorway. "Why don't you order us room service for dinner? That way we can get some food and sleep; tomorrow is going to be a busy day."

"Okay, that sounds good. I need something to take my pill with anyways, and then we can get some well-deserved R&R after that long flight."

"See, you have the right idea about vacation already, some relaxation and fun. Although, can you maybe not take your stuff tonight? I kind of want to do something else with you tonight too. I was thinking a nice massage and a little something to help you relax instead."

Serena raises her eyebrows at him. "A _little_ something, you say?"

"Okay, maybe it's a big something then." Darien laughs in response and pulls a grey t-shirt over his head.

Twenty minutes later, they are sitting in bed enjoying their dinner of chicken parmesan and bison sirloin. Darien cuts off another piece of his chicken but as he eats it, he eyes Serena's plate.

"Is it good?" he points at her sirloin with his fork.

"My bison, you mean?" Darien shakes his head. "Yea, it's pretty good; my favorite meat actually because it's so healthy. It's low in calories and fat but higher in protein than beef. Do you want to try some?" Serena cuts off a portion and stabs it with her fork. Holding the meat upright, she offers it to him.

Closing the gap between them, Darien takes the bite of bison tentatively. Chewing slowly, he tries to ascertain whether it is something he likes or not.

Watching his facial expressions, Serena can't help but laugh out loud as she pushes his should lightly. "So, do you like it or not?"

"I think so? It is good but not quite what I was expecting. I was thinking it would be more game-y but it isn't; it tastes kind of like beef, only better."

"I told you it was good!" Proceeding to eat the last piece, Serena places her plate on the bedside table and her silverware on top. Rolling onto her stomach, she stretches out. Fixing her shorts and tank top that rode up on her from stretching, Serena folds her arms under her head and watches Darien. "Well that was delicious, and I'm barely tired. There is something I want to talk to you about though."

Reaching over, Darien starts to rub Serena's nearly bare shoulders. Only the tiniest strap from her tank top is in the way, so he slides them to the sides of her shoulders so they won't interfere. Continuing rubbing her shoulders, Darien asks "So, what would you like to talk about, my angel?"

"Us; well more of what we are doing in this and our expectations you know, for the future?"

"Uh, okay then. What exactly did you have in mind? What do you want to know or talk about in particular? 'Cause I think I made my intentions pretty clear: I love you and want to be with you for as long as possible. Maybe marry you someday, if you'll let me." Darien moves so that he is sitting on her butt and can massage the full length of her back easier. Moving his hands in small circles along Serena's shoulders he moves slowly down to her tailbone, waiting for a reply.

After a minute of figuring out how to say what she wants to, Serena finally replies, "About what you said the other day in the kitchen?"

She feels the movement of Darien's hands come to a halt, "About your cooking?" then they resume.

Darien was confused, _what does she want to talk about; her cooking? _Upon asking, he feels her body shake beneath him. Increasingly confused, he leans over to look at her face. "Are you laughing at me?"

"Not really laughing at you, more at your innocence than anything." Slowly her laughing dies down, "No, not about my cooking, sweetie." Letting out a deep breath as Darien is massaging, Serena feels her back crack. Feeling some tension release, "That feels really good; you're going to put me to sleep like this. I actually wanted to talk about the whole children thing with you." Closing her eyes, she lets her head sink even deeper into the pillow.

"Alright, what about it? I thought you want to have kids, or at least that's the impression I got." Darien presses her back a little harder, trying to ensure he gets all the kinks out.

"Well, of course I do. I was pregnant and didn't abort it, despite how it was conceived; I think that answers that. But just because I want to have a child doesn't mean that I'll be able to. I just want to make sure that you're okay with the possibility that I may not be able to have any children. I don't want to get any further into this, _if that's even possible_, if you're in it for something that I can't offer you.

Darien is quiet as he scratches up and down the backs of Serena's legs. He can feel the tension in the air, almost like a weight pressing on his shoulders. _I want you but I want kids too… Why can't I have both? I just want the woman I love and I want a child for us to love together. _"I'm not going to lie, I do want kids." He feels her shoulders tense beneath his fingers. Leaning in closer, he presses his fingers into her shoulders a little harder and whispers in her ear, "But, I want you more than I want kids. I can live without them as long as I have you. So, I hope that answers you: I want children but I need you, Sere."

"Oh." Serena feels her face burn. "You know, even after this long, your romanticism still flusters me. You have a way of making everything sound like something out of an old novel."

"What can I say? Being in love makes it rather easy for me to think that way. Now, was there anything else you wanted to discuss before bed?" Rolling off of Serena's back, Darien lies next to her and looks at the ceiling.

"Umm… let's talk about… mmm…" Serena's words trail off and Darien turns to look at her. Trying to think of what else she wants to talk about, Serena feels sleep start to overtake her as her eyes grow heavy.

"Why don't you get some sleep and we'll talk tomorrow. You seem a little rundown lately." Darien kisses the side of her face.

"Uh… huh…" Using the last of her energy, Serena rolls up against Darien and plants a kiss on his chest.


	37. Chapter 35

Chapter 35

Feeling movement beside her, Serena wakes. Looking groggily to her left, she sees Darien roll over onto his back. Thinking he must just be dreaming, she turns back to the her right. She attempts to fall back asleep as Darien continues tossing and turning.

After a few more minutes of trying to sleep, Serena starts to feel uncomfortable. Hearing a small groan come from beside her and feeling a hand grab lightly at her side, she reaches out to turn on the lamp over the nightstand. Turning back to Darien, she notices him mumbling a little and his head lolling side to side.

"Darien?" She shakes him lightly but gets no response. Shaking him a little rougher, Serena calls his name a lIttle louder.

"Serena...Ser.." Darien continues rolling around and mumbling. Being able to see his features now, she watches as they contort almost painfully. Sweat is visibly beading on his forehead and a drop runs down the side of his face.

"Darien!" Serena practically yells at him while shaking him. He rolls back towards her a little and slowly opens his eyes.

Squinting, he sees Serena's face and grabs her arms, pulling her close to him. Practically smothering Serena, she pushes back at him lightly to get him to loosen his hold on her.

"Are you okay?" She looks at his face trying to see if there's any trace of the pain he seemed to be in while sleeping. Placing the back of her hand to his forehead she feels for a temperature. "You're kinda hot, hun."

"I'm okay. Just a bad dream is all." Putting a hand on her lower back and one on the back of her head, Darien pulls her as close against him as possible. Kissing her forehead, he feels his heart-rate start to regulate itself again. It felt like he was on fire but he just wanted to hold her. As close as possible.

"Why don't we go in the shower? Get you to cool down a little. It almost feels like you're running a slight fever."

Getting up from the bed, Darien follows slowly behind Serena. Stumbling a little, he reaches out and grabs onto her arm for balance. She jumps under the contact and turns around to grab his arm in return and help steady him.

"I'm just...just a little dizzy." He mumbles.

"Uh-huh, sure you're just a little dizzy. Sure you aren't getting sick? Do you feel alright?" Serena guides him to the shower and starts it.

"No, yea I'm fine. I just need to get a little sleep and I'll be fine." He strips down and gets in the shower. "You going to join me?"

"Only if you tell me what you were dreaming about." Serena toys with him while stripping down. Pushing her panties off her feet, she stands back up and sees a look on Darien's face that she's never seen before. It was almost like he'd seen a ghost. Still visibly shaken by his dream, he extends a hand to help Serena into the shower with him. "Or not. I don't really need to know." Running a finger down his lips she stops any words from leaving his mouth.

Kissing him, she is surprised to find him kissing back with a certain fervor. Pulling back slightly, she feels his hand return to the back of her head as he pushes her face closer in an attempt to deepen the kiss again. Feeling the almost crazy want that he has for her, Serena places her hands on his chest pushing back more. "Dari-" he kisses her again, "Darien." She twists her face away so he's kissing her collar bone. Placing a hand on either side of his face, she turns him to face her. "What's wrong?" She asks, concern laced in her voice.

"I just... I thought I lost you." He starts to cry and grabs her tightly. "My dream.. Seiya.. you were just... gone." He manages to form a few words between gasps.

"We'll, I'm right here and not going anywhere. Especially with Seiya."

"I watched him.." Darien's face contorts into the painted expression Serena had seen in his sleep. "He killed you. In my dream, he killed you and I watched it happen. I couldn't do anything to stop him."

Serena seems startled for a moment and runs her fingers in his hair trying to soothe him. "I'm right here and so are you, Darien. You haven't failed at protecting me and Seiya can't hurt me, here with you. It was just a bad dream, don't worry about it."

Finishing showering, both Darien and Serena return to bed. Snuggling up against Darien's side, Serena listens to his heartbeat as they drift off to sleep. Waking up several hours later she, Serena makes a mad dash for the bathroom and throws up. Feeling a little nauseous she makes her way back to bed to return to sleep.

"I heard you get out of bed early this morning, you feeling alright?" Darien asks while pulling on his t-shirt.

"Yea, just a little nauseous is all. Must be coming down with something, how are you feeling? You were burning up last night." Serena approaches and touches his forehead. "Feels alright."

"I feel fine, actually. Kinda refreshed now that I think about it. Why don't you go ahead and get dressed, it's almost dinner time now." He chuckles to himself. "Looks like we kinda slept through most of the afternoon. It's all good though, we'll just start driving to the place I planned dinner. Swing through a couple stores along the way if you want, too."

"So. What's this surprise? I know we're going to dinner but what is it we are taking home? It's it an object or something living? Another horse? Cause as awesome as that would be, I'm not sure I need another one right now." She starts laughing but stops herself, puckering her lips to apply gloss to them.

"You look lovely. Although you always do, Angel." He plants a kiss on her cheek. "Let's roll out then. As for your surprise, you'll know it when you see it."

After almost an hour of driving, Darien finally brings the car to a stop in the gravel driveway of a wine vineyard. Telling her to wait a moment, Darien comes around to the passenger side of the car and let's her out. Holding an arm out for her, he escorts her up the small pathway; past a few rose bushes to the heavy wooden door entrance of the old stone building.

The building is dimly lit and smells richly of wine and wood. Looking around, Serena notices a few large barrels that obviously contain wine. Large wooden beams stretch from floor to ceiling, supporting the old building. A man dressed in a black and white waiters outfit approaches them.

"Hello Mr. Shields. It is a pleasure to meet you, finally. You look immensely like your father, definitely have your mother's eyes though. I was very sorry to hear of their passing a few short years ago. I must say, I was quite excited to get a call from you about wanting to come out here though. And that must mean you are Mrs. Tsukino, a pleasure." The waiter takes her hand, bowing a little and kissing it. "Now, if you'll allow me the pleasure, I will escort you both to your table." He turns and walks down a hallway to a small room, set with a heavy wooden table and chairs. Lit by candles hung upon the walls in chandeliers, and a centerpiece on the table itself.

Serena sets herself upon the chair that Darien pulls out and scoots in for her. Smoothing her dress over her lap, she looks across to Darien sitting down and smiles.

"This is kind of amazing!" Serena looks around at the architecture and the candles flickering light along the walls. The man dressed as a waiter walks into the room with a basket of breads and a bottle of wine.

"If you think the view is amazing, wait 'til you try their wine. My parents used to bring home a bottle and let me try it sometimes. It's to die for." Darien says while turning around, adjusting his coat on the back of his chair. The waiter walks around behind the chair, and Darien hands off a small item to the man inconspicuously.

"The fresh salads will be out shortly, followed by the chicken parmesan and our house made vanilla ice cream to finish. Is there something in particular the lady would like to drink other than wine?"

"I think just a little water would be fine, please." Serena replies politely.

"As you wish miss. And for the gentleman?"

"A water for me as well, Walter. And again, I do appreciate you doing this for us." Darien smiles tho the man.

"Anything for you sir. Your parents were very kind in all the years they came here, the least I can do is try to return the favor to you." The man named Walter bows slightly and leaves the room. Shortly after, a young man walks in with two fresh salads in hand, places them on the table and leaves.

"Wow, so your parents must have come here a lot then, huh?" Serena asks then takes a bite of her salad.

"Yes actually. At least twice a year, once for their anniversary and once on the day they met. Although father would plan surprise trips here from time to time because my mother loved it so much. See, Walter owns the place and for special occasions, events and such, he rents it out for the night. He just brings the wine out and hires some of the college kids to serve tables, from what he told me. Doesn't trust the young kids with his good wine, I guess. I don't particularly blame him though, with how much it costs."

"So how many years did your parents come here? Must've been a while if Walter knew them so well. And this wine is spectacular!" Serena remarks while taking another sip.

"Well, my parents got married just before I was born. So for... almost twenty years they came here before they died. My father proposed to mom here."

Seems as if time flies by as they make conversation over dinner but in reality it is hours. Darien excuses himself from the table for a moment, and uses that time to run to the restroom and have a brief conversation with Walter.

"Everything is in order sir, just let me know when you want it brought in."

"Um, let her just finish her ice cream first, then a few minutes after. I really appreciate this. I am just a ball of nerves though!" Darien laughs to the older man.

"That just means you know you have something to lose in this life: her. But I can see she loves you very much, sir. If it's any consolation, I don't believe you have anything to worry about. You know, I remember it like it was yesterday when your father and mother came here for the first time. So in love, they were. It appears as if you two may be just as in love as they were. So, good luck, not that you'll need it."

"Thank you." Darien replies quickly before the man does a short bow and leaves the room. Looking to his hands, they are shaking with nervous energy. He clenches a fist, then releases in hopes of relieving some of it. Tousling his hair a little, he finds his nerves calming slightly. _It's like Walter said, I have nothing to be afraid of. She loves me and I'm sure on some level wants this as much as I do_. He thinks to himself, while straightening his appearance.

Finishng up their ice cream, Darien sees Walter and the young man helping him and gives a subtle nod in their direction. Approaching the table they clear the remainder of the dishes and retreat from the room. Serena sits there nervously toying with her hands but looks up to see Darien smiling at her.

"So... dinner was delicious. What, um, are we gonna do now?" Serena asks while smiling back at him.

"Well, there's still your surprise... you know, I have only known you for, well not even a year yet." He laughs a little at this, "I mean it's almost crazy how much I love you. But not really crazy, I mean not like Seiya, crazy. But I mean I really love you. Oh jeez," he runs a hand through his hair nervously, "I'm not saying this how I meant to. Every time I look at you, it's like my world stops and my breath catches."

Just then they hear a small bark as a puppy comes running into the room. Serena jumps in her seat and turns around to see the pup as it jumps and puts its front paws on her lap. There is a red ribbon with something sparkling by the bow. Darien gets up from his seat and reaches for the puppy's ribbon. Undoing the ribbon quickly, Darien retrieves the shining object. Looking up from the puppy's adorable face, Serena is greeted by the sight of Darien down on one knee. She is speechless as she anticipates what will happen next.

"What I mean to say is: I can't imagine my life without you and I wouldn't want to. I love you so much that it hurts sometimes and I wouldn't have it any other way. Every time I look into the future, all I see is you and all I really care about is you. Serena, will you do me the honor," Darien then holds the ring in front of him, "of becoming my wife?"


	38. Chapter 36

Chapter 36

Serena couldn't help but cry, seeing Darien kneeling before her in his best tux._ I can't believe this is happening. Is this really happening? _Serena clasps a hand to her mouth to muffle the sobs seemingly coming from her. Wondering why she is actually crying and seeing the slight panic in Darien's eyes, Serena practically throws herself to her knees in front of his still kneeling form.

"I-" Trying to form the words, Serena is unable to. So, she thinks of the only thing she can do and kisses Darien. Gasping for air between sobs and kisses, she nods her head.

"I think that's a yes?" Darien laughs as Serena fights back another sob in an attempt to answer him. Wrapping her tightly in a hug, they sit there for a moment as the puppy tries to climb on them.

"Oh, and this little guy is ours too." Darien pulls his right arm from around Serena and wraps it around the pup. He fights back a small laugh as another hard sob escapes her mouth. "I thought you might like some company around the house while I'm at work. He is going to need someone to housebreak and train him. I know how important you think having kids is to me, but if it doesn't happen then it doesn't happen. He'll be our first of many 'kids', okay?"

"Fur-kids? We'll have a bunch of fur-kids?" Serena cries but smiles at the notion.

"Yes, whole bunches and bunches of fur-kids, that's what we'll have honey." Darien laughs at the nickname she gave them. Sliding the beautiful 3-carat pink diamond heart ring onto Serena's finger, Darien returns to his feet still holding her hand and helps her up.

Examining the ring on her finger, Serena admires the beauty of it. The perfectly cut pink diamond heart is bordered all around by the tiniest of clear diamonds. They shine brilliantly despite their size and accent the center piece perfectly.

"I love it! It's so beautiful, and I love the puppy, too!" Serena kisses Darien's cheek and leans down to pick up the puppy. "He's so cute, what kind of dog is he? Reminds me of a German shepherd a little." She kisses the pups muzzle and holds his face to hers.

"You guessed close, he's not a German shepherd but he is a Belgian Malinois. They're actually replacing the shepherds in a lot of police units now. Supposed to be very intelligent and great dogs for protection. Thought he'd be a great fit in our household." Darien plays with the pups muzzle a little. "As for the ring, I am beyond happy you like it. I was hoping you would but wasn't sure, since it isn't a clear diamond. I wanted something beautiful and unique just like my soon-to-be wife."

"It's perfect, all of this is absolutely perfect. I can't wait to get home and tell the girls!" Setting the puppy down, Serena wraps her arms around Darien's neck. Standing on her tip-toes she looks in his eyes. "But before we worry about telling anyone else, why don't we get back to the hotel so I can thank you properly for such a nice night and vacation." She kisses him and pulls his lower lip between her teeth, nibbling it lightly

"Hmm, I like the sound of that." Darien pulls her flush against his body and hugs her tightly, resting his head on top of hers. Just enjoying the feel of her against him, the reassurance that she was real and not just a figment of his imagination.

That night Serena falls asleep peacefully and begins having beautiful dreams of what her and Darien's life could be. Beside her, Darien tries to find sleep but it won't come easily. He's holding the woman he loves, his ring on her finger, and their puppy asleep at the end of the bed. Still, something feels off. Like there's something he is missing or not seeing. Brushing it off, Darien closes his eyes and after a long while, sleep finally claims him.

His dreams are filled with images of their wedding day, and how beautiful she will look. How beautiful she looks everyday and will for the rest of their life together. His heart clenches a little, how beautiful she would look carrying his child. _She'd hit me right now if she knew what I was thinking about. _For the time being, he decides to enjoy this beautiful alternate reality. Soaking up the life they might've had if things were different, he feels almost guilty because he had told Serena he could live without these things. The truth was that he didn't want to though. He wanted her and wanted her to have his child.

Feeling the plane rise off the ground a little and bump on turbulence, Serena clutches the arm on her chair. Taking a deep breath, she looks at Darien and smirks at the smile on his face.

"What's up with you? You were fine on the flight here." Darien laughs at her a little.

"I just don't feel one-hundred-percent yet, that's all. Stomach is kinda jumbled and the turbulence doesn't exactly help." Serena gives him a sideways glance and smiles at the laugh he's obviously trying to suppress. "What's so funny?"

"Just, you. You're funny, you know? It's like, you take on the world on a daily basis and kick it's butt. But when you don't feel well, you just falter a little. It's adorable, and reminds me that you're still human. And need a little help after all." He grips her hand as the turbulence gets worse, then subsides. "Plus, you're just so darn cute. I mean, only you could make feeling sick into such a cute thing instead of disgusting. If it were anyone else, I'd be on the other side of the plane with disinfectant but with you? Well, I just don't mind and want to be near you anyways. Even if it means I'll be sacrificing my health." He winks and turns back to the window.

"Just a few more hours and I'll be able to see Austin, again. It's only been a few days but I find myself missing him like crazy. Has Mina or Amy said how he's doing when you spoke to them at all today?"

"Um, Mina said we need to come home 'cause it's disgusting cleaning up his stall. Something about never wanting to touch horse poop again? But Amy said he's doing fine, has been eating well and she turned him out in the riding ring for a bit. Apparently, when she turned him out in the pasture the first day we were gone, he wouldn't come back in for her. So, the riding ring was the only option if she wasn't going to spend all night outside with him."

"Oops, I forgot to teach her the whistle for him to come to the gate. In my hurry to get ready, I completely forgot to tell her." Serena laughs.

"Well, you can be the one to break that news to her when we get home then." Darien chuckles. "So, have you thought of any good names for the puppy? Now that you've gotten to sleep on it."

"I have been thinking about it actually and I think I've got the perfect idea for his name."

Darien turns her direction in his seat. "And what might the perfect name be?"

"Well seeing as you got him to keep me company and in turn keep me safe. I figured why not the name of someone that's supposed to protect? So, I was thinking Sergeant. What do you think?"

"I think you're right, it's perfect. A nice strong name for what should grow up to be a strong dog and protector, I like it a lot. We'll get him a collar with tags when we get home. Why don't you try to get some sleep and I'll wake you when we're landing."

"Maybe you should sleep, too. I can see the circles under your eyes, Honey. They've been there a while. I haven't said anything but I know you haven't been sleeping well for a few weeks now." Serena replies, a look of sympathy on her face. She could remember well, all the sleepless nights she had and the toll they take on one's body.

"It's been longer than a few weeks, but I'm okay, sweetie. I just worry sometimes that's all. I got a good couple hours of sleep last night, so I assure you I'm fine." Darien places an arm around her shoulders.

"I worry sometimes too, you know." Serena looks up at him. "About something happening to you or to me. About Seiya coming back. I worry about what would happen to you; you'd be devastated and I don't want to be responsible for that level of hurt for you." At this, Darien turns to face the window. "I know that you want to protect me, and that's why I feel safe enough to sleep the whole night through and to even be alone at times. I know you'll be there if I really need you." He turns back to face her. "But, you won't be of much help to anyone unless you get some sleep. If you really want to protect me, then you need to get some rest. So, please, why don't you try? We're up in the air for another couple hours, no one can get us here, so sleep... For me?" At the sight of his eyes closing a little, Serena cradles his face in her hands. Having put the armrest between them in the upright position, she turns to face him a little easier. "It's okay, just close your eyes." Running her thumbs along either side of his face, she gently glides them over his eyelids. As he closes his eyes she gives his forehead a kiss and brings it to her chest. Slowly turning onto his side, Darien rests his head upon her lap and drifts off into a dreamless sleep.


End file.
